Prophecies
by Marika
Summary: an AU fic where the pilots are part of a hunted race...
1. Prologue

The boy stumbled through the dark woods, tripping on exposed roots and low shrubs. Normally he was quite agile, but he was injured and the growing weakness in his limbs due to blood loss robbed him of his usual grace.  
  
They're still behind me... I can't lose them, not as long as they have that damn crystal... His large violet eyes flicked back and forth wildly, looking first in front of him, then behind. Forward lay an endless expanse of dark, cold, dangerous woods, but he would gladly have welcomed the dangers, if it saved him from what was behind... Behind him he could hear the sounds of pursuit growing louder.  
  
He took another faltering step forward, then fell as he wounded leg finally gave out from under him. He swore viciously, trying to get back to his feet, but it was no good. The long gash down the front of his left thigh was still bleeding freely as was the wound on his right palm. He'd been sleeping behind a shed, trying to grab a few hours of rest before resuming his flight across the country. The Special Forces soldiers must have been closer than he'd thought, because he remembered hearing a step, then feeling a sharp blow to the head. When he woke up he'd been bound hand and foot, lying at the edge of the soldier's campfire. It had taken him only a few minutes to slip out of the ropes, and he'd been on his way out of the campsite when he had the bad fortune to run into a pair of soldiers coming back from answering a call of nature, of all things! Someone up there didn't like him. He'd killed them both, but not before receiving the wound to his thigh, and the one to his hand when he used it to deflect a blow that might have killed him. A stupid mistake, that, but one that he was paying for in spades.  
  
He'd bound the wounds as best he could with strips of cloth torn from his shirt, but it obviously wasn't good enough. He'd been steadily loosing blood for the last several hours, ever since he escaped the Special Forces, but he was so tired...  
  
No! he shouted silently at himself, and got to his feet, leaning heavily on a tree. I won't give up! He lurched away from the tree and tried to flee. He made it all of five steps away before his leg collapsed out from under him again. It just refused to bear his weight. But worse than that was the slight tingle that ran up and down his spine, and one that had nothing to do with the cold drizzle that had him soaked to the bone. Violet eyes narrowed dangerously. Someone's watching me. He quietly expanded his sphere of responsibility, but found nothing. It must be a long distance scrying spell, I'd have sensed it if it was anyone nearby... Damn it. The distant observer meant that the one thing that might have saved him at this point was the one thing he couldn't do.  
A sense of resignation settled over him, although he was by no means defeated. He propped himself up against a tree and waited for the Special Forces troops to arrive. They may catch me, but I'll take a few dozen of them with me. A predatory grin appeared on his face, and he tossed his bangs out of his eyes. Much of his knee-length brown hair had escaped the braid he usually kept it in, and he carefully pushed it out of his way, behind his back. Wouldn't do for my arms to get tangled in it now, he thought with a grim humor, fingering one of the three knives he had left. He'd throw two of them, he decided, and save the third to defend himself.  
  
"Hey, I think I see something!" someone shouted from very close, and he involuntarily stiffened.   
  
A few minutes later he saw a faint light emerge from the gloom. It was soon revealed to be a group of eight well-armed men, with the leader carrying a mage-light in a crystal attached to a staff. The crystal flared brightly and a ray of light shot out of it, illuminating the boy.  
  
So that's how they found me. Damn crystal. Damn whoever made them.  
  
His left hand tightened around one of his knives. He wasn't as good a shot with his left hand, but it was good enough. He suddenly had a new primary target as he heard one of the men.  
  
"There it is!" the man shouted. "The one that calls itself Duo Maxwell!"  
  
How did they know my name? he wondered, furious. One of the villagers in the last village must have told them. He promised himself he would find them who had given him away and punish them.  
  
Duo snarled silently. Let's just show them what 'it' can do! he thought, furious. He raised his arm, then cast his knife at the seeking crystal. It struck the crystal, which promptly shattered in a burst of light.  
  
The soldiers swore, and several fumbled for flint to light torches. As soon as they did, his second knife found its mark in the neck of the man in the lead. He fell to the ground with blood bubbling out of his lips.   
  
Duo smirked. Served them right for messing with Death, he thought with more than a little bit of scorn and self-hatred accompanying that thought.  
  
"So you finally caught up with me, huh?" he asked with a grin. "It sure took you long enough. You really ought to get someone to teach you how to tie knots properly.   
  
"You little..." one of the men threatened, but broke off when he saw the last knife Duo still held.  
  
"You were saying? I've still got one left. Who's it going to be?" he said, and deliberately licked his lips. It was definitely satisfying to see half of the soldiers cringe at his action.  
  
"You hear what it said?" another one said. "It's only got one knife left. Spread out and surround it. We can capture it now."  
  
Duo hid his rage at continually being referred to as 'it'. "Are you sure you want to do that?" he asked playfully. "It might be bad for your health," he said, and flexed the fingers of his wounded hand, causing a faint glow to form around them. This much normal mages could do, and if he used his powers this way, it wouldn't tip off his unseen watcher that he was different.   
  
"Nice try, faery, but we're guarded against pain, and one of your kind can't injure with your power," the first man said.  
  
One of my kind. Sure. Whatever I am, it isn't one of the harmless faeries. But I can't let them know that... An incoherent growl burst from his lips, and the first man laughed.  
  
"See, nothing but an animal," he said. "It knows that it can't touch us as long as we have these!" his hand went to his chest to grasp the protective pendant they all - damn them - were wearing. He continued to laugh for a minute, then stopped and stared in surprise at the knife-hilt protruding from his chest, just beneath his protective pendant.   
  
Duo got a great deal of satisfaction out of watching the body fall over, but had instant reason to regret his impetuous action when the remaining six soldiers jumped on him. He fought back the best he could, but they soon had him pinned to the ground. They immediately set to work binding his arms and lets so that he could barely move. They gagged him, too, so he couldn't even get at them that way.  
  
Then they brought it out.  
  
He'd known this was coming since they started hunting him. He'd known what happened to those the Special Forces caught, but that didn't keep him from panicking when he saw the metal collar gleaming dully in the soldier's hands, he started thrashing wildly, desperately trying to free himself. I am not some sort of fucking animal! I'm human! his mind shrieked. Intellectually he knew that it was hopeless and that he'd only aggravate his injuries, but he couldn't help it. They were going to try to turn him into a slave, or worse, into some sort of animal.  
  
But he couldn't move, and two of them held his hair out of the way and fastened the metal collar around his throat. It almost choked him, and he forced himself to calm down so he wouldn't asphyxiate himself. He stopped struggling. It was pointless now.  
  



	2. Part 1

"Someone's coming," Quatre said, sitting up. Then he winced. "And they've hurt him," he said, unable to keep the pain and concern out of his voice. His eyes glazed over as he looked at a scene far away.  
  
Trowa hastily got up and walked across the room, where he wrapped his arms around the trembling blond, secure in the knowledge that Quatre was so wrapped up in events elsewhere that he'd never remember the embrace, would only get some support in it. The others stared at him, but neither commented, for which Trowa was grateful. He was confused enough without their help. "Be careful," he murmured. "You never know when they might be watching us."  
  
"I don't think they're watching us," Quatre murmured.  
  
"But there's no way to know for certain," Heero observed disapprovingly from across the room.  
  
"I can't help it," Quatre whimpered, and Trowa's arms tightened involuntarily around him. "He hurts so much, and he's powerful." Quatre's teal blue eyes opened wider as he saw something far away. "There are only six Hunters with him."  
  
That got Wufei's attention, and he looked up from the kata he was performing. "Impossible," he stated. "The Hunters are always sent out in groups of twelve. Are you saying they think so little of us that they are only sending out six now?" there was a hint of outrage in his voice.  
  
"No," Quatre said after a moment, as Trowa moved away. He didn't want Quatre to come out of his trance and find himself in the taller boy's arms. "I think... I think he killed half of them."  
  
There was a long silence. Finally Quatre said, "You don't think he..." he trailed off when he saw a brief flicker of alarm pass through Trowa's one visible eye.  
  
"Don't even say it," he whispered. "If they found out..."  
  
Quatre bit his lip and fell silent.  
  
"How long until he gets here?"   
  
"I don't know. Not long."  
  
"Lord Quatre!" cried a young voice. They all looked up as a young boy with dirty blond hair pushed aside the canvas flap that covered the doorway. "They're brining in someone new, they say they're putting him in with you guys." The boy licked his lips nervously. "They say he's in really bad shape. And they say to come out now."  
  
"Thanks, Evie," Quatre said with a kindly smile. He carefully gathered up the chain attached to his collar, and wrapped it around his waist to get it out of the way. The boy respectfully held the canvas out of the way while the four of them exited the little hut. Then Evie ran past them and squeezed through the bars that separated their area of the enclosure from the main area.  
  
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"Hey Lord Quatre!" one of the guards shouted from the top of the wall the surrounded the enclosure. Something hit him in the back of his head, and Quatre stumbled, fighting back tears.   
  
"Everyone up against the bars!" someone shouted, and they all pressed their hands against the bars, putting their faces in the spaces in between the bars. They all remained completely silent, staring straight ahead as the guards walked pas them, occasionally offering a verbal or physical jab towards their prisoners.  
  
Finally the main gate opened and four Hunters came in, carrying a large cage between them. Crouched inside the cage was a figure dressed in tattered black clothes and with a long brown braid running down his/her back. Was it a boy or a girl? He couldn't tell from this angle. The face was turned away, and what little of the body he could see was mottled with dark bruises, hiding any hint of the sex of the prisoner. Quatre's hands clenched into fists around the bars as he remembered getting similar treatment eight months ago, just after his fifteenth birthday, when it finally became impossible to hide that he was one of the so-called 'faery folk' anymore. They'd transported him for three days across country in one of those cages, treating him like little more than an animal. When they finally got to the compound, he'd still had his hands tied behind his back and had been forced to stumble after the guards as they led him around by the chain attached to the collar around his throat. And then...  
  
His line of thought was distracted when he realized that the prisoner, whoever he/she was, was still unconscious. At least they wouldn't have to put up with humiliation by the guards.  
  
His concern increased as the Hunters opened the cage and tossed its occupant on the ground. The prisoner had been badly beaten - bruises marred half of his/her body, and the rough treatment the prisoner was receiving at the hands of the guards had made the large gash on his leg start bleeding again.   
  
"This one," the Hunter kicked the prisoner in the side. The prisoner didn't respond at all. "Is a troublemaker. Upon discovery of what it was, it failed to turn itself in. All of the kingdom knows the importance of the mission which King Treize has set for himself. A great danger is approaching this land, and only by properly utilizing and controlling the cursed faeries will we survive it. This one," he kicked again, "has been working against the good of all, and has been suitably punished. It will be kept with the other troublemakers." His gaze lighted on Quatre. "You. Faery-slave, come over here."  
  
Quatre nodded slightly, carefully avoiding eye contact. These fools thought that his kind could steal souls if their eyes met. As if they had souls of any worth to steal at all. As if we'd want to.  
  
He walked quickly over to the prisoner, who was slightly smaller than he was. Quatre reached down and touched the prisoner's shoulder, and a shock of recognition ran through him. There was no longer any question as to the prisoner's sex. He's powerful - not normal. Like me. Quatre had felt the same recognition when he met the other three. But this felt different. What does it mean? he wondered.  
  
Quatre gasped as a whip hit his exposed back. "What do you think you're doing, faery? Just drag him to your cage!"  
  
With some difficulty, Quatre managed to get the boy's hands free, then got his shoulder under the boy's arm. He started to drag him back to 'their cage', wishing he was strong enough to carry the boy properly.  
  
The guard stuck his food in front of Quatre and pushed, sending him sprawling to the ground. He managed to get his body between the ground and the boy, so he could cushion the fall slightly. He grunted as the other boy landed on him, and heard a slight groan from the still-unconscious boy.  
  
The guard laughed, and watched as Quatre managed to half-carry, half-drag the boy back to the cage, where Heero took the boy from him and easily carried him into the little hut they lived in. They silently followed as the guards re-locked the door.  
  
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Heero set the boy down on one of the cots, and Quatre automatically started to move towards him. Trowa grabbed his arm. His face, as usual, was an expressionless mask, half-hidden under his bangs. His one visible eye was carefully blank, as always. "You know we've been ordered not to use our powers except to serve Treize." His voice, like everything else about him, was completely devoid of all emotion. However, Quatre understood the care behind the comment, no matter how Trowa tried to hide it.  
  
He smiled at the taller boy. "If I don't help him, he may die, or be permanently crippled. You could even say that I am serving Treize's interests - his interests are not served if one of us dies." Quatre knew his reasoning was shaky at best, but he was already decided. He started to move towards the boy again, but once again Trowa's hand on his arm stopped him.  
  
"Just a moment," Trowa told him, then flexed his fingers and put his hand behind Quatre. Quatre felt the fain tingle of magic on his skin, and the pain from the whiplash disappeared. Warned by this, he turned and caught Trowa as he collapsed.  
  
"Why did you do that?" he demanded, helping Trowa to another cot. You're never going to convince me that you don't feel anything if you keep doing stupid things like this. "You know I can heal myself without exhausting myself!" he hissed. "I..." he trailed off as Trowa placed a finger on his lips, shaking his head sadly.   
  
"What will it take to convince you that it is not safe to talk about such things?" he asked.  
  
Quatre's lips were set in a thin line. He held his hand over Trowa's prone form. A yellow glow formed around his hand, and for a second Trowa's body also glowed. Quatre wilted momentarily as Trowa's exhaustion hit him, then straightened.   
  
Here was the most dangerous and potentially useful of his secrets: he was different.  
  
Most of the mage-gifted, or faery folk as the commoners chose to call them, were fairly helpless and harmless. Most were minor healers, driven out of hiding by the desire, no, the need to use their powers to help others. It wasn't something you had a choice about - when you had that sort of ability, you couldn't not use it, not when there were people in pain anywhere near you. But normal mages, when they used their power for anything more major than a paper cut, spent anywhere from a few hours to weeks flat-out on their backs from exhaustion. Quatre had never been tired from using his powers in his entire life, which was how he'd managed to hide what he was for so long, despite having all the physical characteristics that caused the normal humans to call them faeries.   
  
There were other types of normal mages, too, ones who could make illusions, and a few who could set spells on stones, minor ones like the light-stones the Hunters used. But they were as weak, generally, as the normal healers. Holding a solid illusion for more than a few minutes was impossible, and they were unconscious for weeks afterwards. The same was true those who could spell stones.   
  
But not Quatre. He'd never been tired after using his power, and what was more, he could use them on himself. All of the 'normal' powers a mage might have he had, not just one of them, and all of them were stronger than anyone he'd ever heard of. If he really wanted to, he could have cast an illusion of invisibility on himself and walked out of this horrible place tomorrow. But he wouldn't abandon his companions.   
  
As he moved to heal the new boy, he mentally considered his three companions. Although none of them had ever told him directly, he knew that they weren't normal mages either. But their normal powers were as weak as any of the other mages, so it had to be something else.  
  
He hadn't worked up the courage yet to ask them about it. Maybe Trowa...  
  
He called up his power again, this time concentrating on the boy. There were no broken bones, thank the gods. Quatre always felt the pain of those he healed, and he really hated broken bones.  
  
"Do we have any clothes, clean water?" he asked after healing the worst of the damage. Trowa brought him some water, and Wufei tossed over the rough shirt and pants that all the prisoners wore. As quickly as he could, Quatre stripped the boy of his tattered rags, washed him, and then eased him into the new clothing. There wasn't much danger of him waking up for several hours, at least. Quatre might not be exhausted, but the boy had been through quite an ordeal, and he needed sleep. Underneath the dirt and bruises, the boy was quite beautiful. He looked very young as he slept, although he was probably as old as Quatre.  
  
"Hide these," Quatre said shortly, thrusting the remains of the boy's clothes at Heero. The guards came in regularly to destroy anything the prisoners had saved or made to remind them of when they'd been considered human. The ruined clothes were all that was left of the boy's past, and Quatre intended to save it if he could.  
  
"Hn." Heero took the clothes, but stood staring at the new boy for some time. It was the first time Quatre could remember Heero showing interest in anything, much less another person.  
  
Quatre finally got up the guts to speak. "You feel it too, don't you?" Heero glanced at him, an angry smile on his face. "All of you," Quatre added, turning to include the other two in his comment. They glanced at him, then went back to looking at the boy. "It's as if we were all waiting for something, for someone. Now we're complete."  
  
Wufei grunted. "Let's see who he is before we jump to any conclusions," was his almost comment before turning away.  
  
Heero had slipped out the door to hide the clothes before Quatre could turn to him, and Trowa refused to meet his gaze. Quatre quietly sat down to wait for the boy to way, but inwardly he was elated. Even if they didn't admit it, he knew they'd sensed it. And now the waiting was over...  
  
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When he first woke up, the first thing Duo became aware of was that he wasn't in pain. The second thing he noticed was that he could still feel the damn collar around his neck. The hope that it all might have been a bad dream died stillborn. He opened his eyes.  
  
A blond-haired, blue-eyed boy who looked like an angel was standing over him. "Oh good, you're awake," the angel said. "Don't worry, you're with friends."  
  
"I don't have any friends," he responded automatically.  
  
"Well, I want to be your friend," the angel said, hardly looking miffed at the rejection. "How are you feeling?"  
  
Duo glanced down at his right hand and saw, to his surprise, that there was no sign of injury. He sat up straight. "What the hell did you do to me?" he demanded.  
  
"I healed you," came the calm response.  
  
"You healed... me?" he couldn't believe his ears. He knew, from personal experience, how difficult, painful, and exhausting healing someone was, especially when they were as badly injured as he'd been. No one had cared about him to do something like that in... years, at least. Actually, no one had cared about him in any capacity for years. Thinking about the last people who'd cared about him, he realized that the necklace he wore in remembrance of them was missing. He tried not to panic. Those damned soldiers must have taken it. There was plenty of time for him to scout around and steal it back. He brought his attention back to the angel. "All right," he said, seeking some sort of advantage. "You want to be my friend? You can start by answering some questions, like who the hell you are and where the hell I am!"   
  
"Oh, I'm sorry, my manners are quite lacking," the angel said, standing up. His manners? Who does he think he is, a nobleman? "My name is Quatre. These," he gestured gracefully around the one-room hut at people standing in shadowy corners. "...are Trowa, Heero, and Wufei."  
  
Trowa had auburn hair combed in a way so that it covered half of his face, leaving only one emerald-green eye visible. Heero had messy brown hair and cold blue eyes that looked absolutely dead as he glared at the visitor. Wufei was obviously a foreigner, with exotic black, slanted eyes and straight black hair.  
  
"What, don't you have any other names?" Duo smirked, trying to fight the feeling that he knew these people, had known them all his life, and had just been waiting to meet them. "Or is it just Quatre, Heero, Trowa, and Wufei?" he almost regretted his words when a flicker of pain passed over Quatre's face.   
  
"No one I here has family outside," the blond boy said quietly. "We lose it all when they bring us here."  
  
"Yeah, whatever," Duo said, glossing over the fact that he had no family to lose. "Speaking of which, where am I?"  
  
"You are in a prison, known to us as the compound, in the kingdom of Oz. You were brought here because of..." he trailed off, and touched his own sharply-pointed ears, a trait which they all shared. There were a number of physical oddities that marked them as not entirely human, but the pointed ears were the most obvious. "Because of what they think this means."  
  
"And what do they want with us?"  
  
"Treize wants to control all the mages in the kingdom, to have absolute control over us. He thinks that we're the key to some sort of ancient prophecy..." he trailed off and shrugged. "I don't know anything beyond that.  
  
"That's plenty," Duo said suspiciously. "How do you know so..."  
  
"I think it's your turn to give us some answers," Trowa interrupted him. "What's your name?"  
  
"Duo," he replied. Then, remembering Quatre's comment about their lack of other names, added, "Duo Maxwell."  
  
Wufei snorted in disgust, prompting Duo to jump off the cot and make a ridiculously exaggerated bow. "Duo Maxwell, champion thief, at your service."  
  
Wufei made a strangled sound, but Quatre smiled, which was enough encouragement for Duo. Whatever else he might have said was jut off when Heero glanced past the canvas-door and said, "Soldiers coming."  
  
"How many?" Quatre asked, is motion towards the door accompanied by the clink of chains. Duo stared in surprise at the long length of chain attached to his collar and then wrapped around his waist. With a quick glance around the room, Duo reaffirmed what he thought he'd seen - none of the others were chained - why was Quatre? He wasn't exactly a threat - he looked as if someone with a bit of strength could break him in half with very little effort. Why him?  
  
"Eight," Heero responded in a flat voice.  
  
"They're here for you," Quatre said, looking at Duo.  
  
"Me? Why?" Duo asked, acting as if he didn't care at all.  
  
"Treize always speaks to his new prisoners personally," Quatre told him, glancing anxiously at the door.  
  
"Why the hell would he do that?"  
  
Quatre stared at him, looking much like a trapped animal, and shrugged.  
  
Trowa asked, "Quatre, do you want me to..."  
  
Quatre shook his head. "No, it's today anyway. There's no need for both of us to be punished."  
  
"Punished, what the hell are you talking about?" Duo demanded as the soldiers burst through the door.  
  
"That one," one of them said, and Duo was roughly seized, his hands bound behind his back. None of the others made a move to help him. Friends. Yeah, sure, he thought sarcastically.  
  
"Wait a minute," the soldier said, gripping his chin. "There isn't a mark on it." He let go of Duo's chin and turned to face the others. "Which of you did it?" he demanded.  
  
"I did it," Quatre said, stepping forward, a resigned expression on his face. He was immediately seized by two of the guards, who also bound his hands.  
  
"You will be punished."  
  
Quatre shrugged, or at least he would have if they weren't holding his arms so tightly. "What else is new?"  
  
Before Duo could figure out what they were talking about, he was hustled out of the hut and the cage, across a big open area surrounded by more huts and a large wooden barricade, and through a door leading to a room situated within the barricade itself. The guards escorted him into the room, which contained a single man in a fancy doublet with long red hair tied back in a ponytail.  
  
"Why did you bring that one here?" he asked in an ultra-sophisticated voice that set Duo's teeth on edge. "I only wished to speak with the new one."  
  
"Yes, your majesty, but this one disobeyed your direct orders," the guard said, shoving Quatre forward.  
  
The man - this must be King Treize - stared at Quatre. "Is this true?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, Treize."  
  
"Do you have anything to say in your defense?"  
  
"No."  
  
The king frowned slightly. "Would you please explain your actions?"  
  
Duo frowned as he watched Quatre. It almost seemed like Treize was looking for an excuse not to punish him, and Quatre seemed just as determined not to give him an excuse.   
  
"Your Hunters overdid it. He might have died if I hadn't helped him."  
  
"Then you might have been serving me. I need as many of your kind as I can find."  
  
"I would have done it if it hurt you, Treize. I would have done it if it killed you, too."  
  
"Do you still hate me so much, Quatre?" the king asked, confirming Duo's belief that there was something very strange going on here. It was almost as if Quatre had known - or even been friends with - the king before his imprisonment. But that was impossible, wasn't it?  
  
Quatre didn't respond.  
  
"Very well," Treize said, and turned to the guards. "Give him ten lashes and then take him to the garden. His father is waiting."  
  
Quatre didn't so much as blink when Treize announced his punishment, but when he mentioned a father, Quatre's shoulders slumped slightly.  
  
"Yes, your majesty." The guard saluted, and they pulled Quatre out of view.  
  
"What did you do that for?" Duo demanded.  
  
"We must enforce the rules, or there will be chaos."  
  
"Quatre's harmless!" Duo protested. Crack. The sound of a whip was clearly audible, coming from the enclosure, and Duo winced sympathetically, then turned the wince into a grimace of anger. "And who the hell to you think you are, to dictate who we can heal?" Crack. That got to him the most. Not using your power could be painful, sometimes, knowing that there were people around who were hurting. Duo had taught himself to ignore the pain, but he couldn't see Quatre doing anything like that. It had to be agony, not being able to help people.  
  
"I am your king." Crack.  
  
Duo snorted. "Not mine." Crack.  
  
"That is true, but not for the reasons you think." Crack. "I am not your king, because you are not a citizen of Oz." Crack. "You aren't human. Animals can't be citizens." Crack.   
  
"Why you..." Duo took a step towards the king, but the guards pulled him back. Crack.  
  
"An unpleasant reality, but it's true." Crack. "I make a point of speaking to every one of you, to tell you why your imprisonment is necessary." Crack.  
  
Duo had a half-dozen retorts ready, but he uncharacteristically held his tongue. He really wanted - no, needed - this information.  
  
"I have been warned by many star-gazers that a great danger is approaching this land, one magical in nature, and I have confirmed those warnings in numerous ancient prophecies, some dating from before the Mage Wars. I know that somehow your kind are the key to protecting our land, and that is why I have gathered as many of you here as I could over the last seven years."  
  
Duo stared at him in unfeigned contempt, grateful that he no longer had to listen to them torturing Quatre. "You fool. They would have cooperated, they would have come on their own if you'd asked them. Instead you treat us like criminals, or worse, like animals. And now you want us to help you?"  
  
"Oh, they might have cooperated, but they wouldn't have come. I tried, but they wouldn't leave their homes, the people they were taking care of and protecting, to live in a group for an unknown period of time, when they wouldn't be able to help people. They took their responsibilities very seriously." He shrugged. "Understandable, but unacceptable. I started bringing them here by force. Their friends and family started to get upset, so I separated them from their people by taking away their humanity. People might feel sorry for a bunch of sorcerers, but no one feels bad about locking up dangerous animals with special powers who masquerade as humans."  
  
"You fucking bastard. You convinced people we were animals so that you could capture us? You..." Duo searched his extensive vocabulary for a word that would convey his disgust and anger, and finally settled on, "...fucking bastard," again.   
  
"Sir." Another guard appeared in the doorway. "It's time."  
  
Treize nodded, then opened a large cabinet. Inside was a rather large mirror. Treize frowned at it and murmured a few words, and an image appeared in the glass. Duo gasped and took a step closer to get a better look. This was High Magic, the old kind, from before the Mage Wars when those with magic had real power. Duo doubted that anyone alive now could create a spell that complicated, so the mirror had to be centuries old. So that's how he spied on me in the woods. I'd shatter it, except there's so little High Magic left in the world, it all needs to be preserved. But not if it's being used like this...  
  
He froze when he saw who the mirror was showing. Quatre, his hands still bound behind his back, a back still bleeding from his punishment, was led to a stone wall on the edge of a beautiful garden. The chain around his waist was unwrapped and attached to a metal ring set in the wall. Then the guards left.  
  
Suddenly a yellow-haired man dressed like a nobleman stepped into view. "Who is that?" he asked as Quatre and the man stared at each other.  
  
"Lord Winner, also called the Earl of the Desert. He is a powerful man, and until I produce an heir, third in line for the throne. He is also the only one so close to the throne who has not made an attempt on my life. An honorable man."  
  
Duo swallowed. In his experience it was a bad idea to get involved with anyone in a position of power. It was far too easy to end up dead in those situations. "What does he want with Quatre?"  
  
"To speak with his son, I would imagine."  
  
"What?!"  
  
Treize turned to look at him. "You mean to say that you didn't know? How did he introduce himself?"  
  
"He... he just said his name was Quatre, that he had no family," Duo said without thinking, trying to wrap his mind around the fact that a fellow prisoner was a nobleman, and a very powerful nobleman at that. "Wait a minute. If his father is third in line for the throne..."  
  
"His full name is Quatre Rabera Winner, heir to the lands and title of the Winner family, and fourth in line for the throne if I should die. Or rather, he was Quatre Rabera Winner. Now he is only Quatre, a faery slave. Not even human."  
  
"He's more human than you'll ever be," Duo muttered, watching the way Quatre held his head high, even though he was chained like some sort of animal.  
  
"And he probably would have made a better king than I," Treize agreed. "Unfortunately, he had the poor sense to reveal his powers in public. He'd managed to keep it all hidden for years, even from his family, and he gave it all up for the sake of a little orphan girl." He shrugged. "He was captured on the spot by one of my most... enthusiastic hunters, and transported back here caged, treated as nothing more than some sort of exotic beast. His father came and begged me to have mercy on the boy. It was too late to conceal what he was, but I was willing to release him to his father's custody because of respect towards the father and fondness for the son, but he refused to leave."  
  
Duo had a hard time believing that anyone would stay a second longer in this place than that absolutely had to, but if anyone would, it would be the boy who took a beating to heal a thief.  
  
The two of them had been speaking for some time, and finally Quatre said something that made the older man stiffen in anger. Quatre hung his head as his father stomped away.  
  
"Still so stubborn, child?" Treize murmured to himself. "I had thought you would give up after some time. Your time here has been harder than most..." he trailed off, realizing that he had an audience. "I'd hoped for your cooperation..." he started.  
  
"Well, you'll just have to get used to disappointment," Duo sneered.  
  
Treize shot him a cold look and continued, "But if I can't have that, I'll have your obedience." He turned to the guards. "Throw it back in its cage."  
  
-----------------------------------------------  
  
Trowa looked up as the guards dumped the new boy, Duo, on the floor. His hands were still bound behind his back. He got smoothly to his feet, twisting his arms and wrists in a serpentine manner. Suddenly his arms were loose and he dropped a piece of rope on the ground.  
  
He grinned at them. "Someone ought to teach those guys how to tie a knot. On the other hand, maybe not." He seemed disappointed when no one responded, but it didn't discourage him from talking. "So where is Quatre?"  
  
"They haven't brought him back yet," Trowa told him.  
  
"Is it true that he's a nobleman?" Duo asked.  
  
Trowa stiffened involuntarily. He didn't like to be reminded of the vast differences between his and Quatre's past. Quatre seemed nice enough when he was in here, but how could a friendship between a noble and an orphaned circus performer ever exist anywhere else?   
  
He was relieved when Wufei snapped, "He used to be a nobleman. Now he just a prisoner, the same as the rest of us."  
  
"All right, all right, what's up your ass?" Duo muttered.  
  
"Who told you he used to be a nobleman?" Trowa asked. It wasn't the sort of thing that Quatre talked about, and no one else did either. The other prisoners called him 'Lord Quatre' , but that was out of respect, not because of who he'd been outside.  
  
"Treize told me when I saw him meeting with his father," Duo told them.  
  
Wufei spun around to look at him, and even Heero looked surprised.  
  
"Meeting with his father?" Trowa repeated, surprised at feeling the pain of betrayal. It served him right for thinking that he could trust anyone, much less a nobleman.  
  
"You didn't know?" Duo asked, then continued. "Quatre's dad is a personal friend of Treize, and Treize agreed to release Quatre to his father's custody."  
  
Father's custody? It meant that Quatre would be a prisoner in his own home, probably confined to a few rooms and never allowed out, but it would undoubtedly be better than life here. "Did Treize change his mind?"  
  
Duo stared at them. "You mean you didn't know that, either? He refused to leave and be cuddled while you guys were still here. His father comes by every now and then to try to convince him to leave. Treize said... he said that Quatre's time here had been harder than most. Why?"  
  
"The guards like to see one of the great ones brought low," Trowa said, his mind racing. They all knew that Quatre had some special abilities - they all did, even if they didn't talk about it. Quatre probably could have walked out of here at any time. Trowa knew he could but the only place he had to go was the circus he'd been with for the past two years, and he wouldn't lead the Hunters to them. He'd been assuming that Quatre didn't escape because if he did, he would be a fugitive, and wouldn't live in the manner he'd grown up in. The thought that he could have gone back there, to his father's mansion, and had chosen to stay here shocked Trowa.  
  
"Here he comes," Heero said in a low voice.  
  
They all stood up and moved to the opposite end of the room so as not to give the guards an excuse to punish them. Duo watched them with bright eyes and determined look on his face, then followed. Quick learner, and powerful too, he observed. Not normal. Like the rest of them.   
  
A shove sent Quatre stumbling into the room. He might have recovered his balance, but then the guards threw the chain after him. It hit him in the back, and the mass of it knocked him to his knees. For once the guards didn't come in to further torment him, and Quatre got to his feet. There was a gash on his forehead and he had a fat lip. The way he was moving indicated there were more injuries under his clothes. Every two weeks the guards came for him - he called it punishment - and he always came back in this condition. He never said anything about his father.  
  
Quatre looked around at them, then stared directly at Duo and began to glow. Duo's eyes widened as the injuries disappeared. Quatre turned his back towards Trowa. "Could you..."  
  
Trowa untied his hands. "How is your father?" he asked, trying to keep bitterness out of his voice and failing.  
  
Quatre stiffened. "How did you know?" he asked, his face anguished. Quatre wore his expressions as openly as some people wore clothing.  
  
"Duo saw you when he was in Treize's office," Trowa said, wondering at the anger he felt.  
  
Quatre bit his lip and looked at the ground. "What do you know?"  
  
"You could get out of here?" Wufei asked.  
  
"Yeah, but not free. This... this damn collar," Quatre tugged futilely at the chain, showing anger with it for the first time Trowa could remember. "It stays on, with the chain. The chain is attached to a wall in my room back home, and they leave me there for the rest of my life. Those four walls for the rest of my life," he said, sounding bitter. "And I'd have to live knowing that I left you here in this place."  
  
"Those four walls would be better than these four walls."  
  
"I'm not leaving."  
  
"Excuse me, but am I the only one here who noticed something?" Duo interrupted. "You just healed yourself! No one can do that!"  
  
"I can," Quatre said. "But you can do things too, can't you?"  
  
Duo suddenly became very still. "What else can you do?"  
  
"Lots of things."  
  
"Could you escape?"  
  
Quatre shrugged. "I think so. But any of us could, I think."  
  
"You all..." Duo shook his head in disbelief. "I thought I was the only one!" They all knew he wasn't just talking about being able to escape.  
  
"Hold your tongue!" Wufei snapped. "They could be watching..."  
  
Surprisingly, Duo did shut up. Trowa had a good idea that silence was unusual where the violet-eyed boy was concerned. Very unusual.  
  
"Fine. But we'll talk about this later," Duo said, sounding grim.   
  
-------------------------------------------------------  
  
Duo devoted the rest of the afternoon to entertaining the others, but for some reason, they didn't seem particularly entertained. Wufei actually walked outside, and only came back in when the guards became excessively abusive. Then he came back in and leveled a furious glare at Duo. That was nothing compared to the glare Heero was using on him. Trowa was pointedly ignoring him. Quatre listened to him, occasionally nodding or smiling in response to a joke, but Duo could tell he wasn't really paying attention.   
  
That night Duo had strange dreams. Really strange. Nightmares, sort of. Nightmares were nothing new to him, not for years. Not that it was something he didn't deserve, after what he did. But this wasn't a nightmare, not quite.  
  
He was standing on top of a hill in the center of a vast plain. There were black clouds overhead, stretching forever in every direction, and a chill wind was blowing.  
  
Duo looked around and saw his four current companions, but they were not the same people that he met in the compound. Wufei had large red wings sprouting from his back, and behind him stood a fiery dragon. Trowa had brown-feathered wings sprouting from his back, and a multitude of animals stood behind him. Quatre had glowing gold wings behind him, and Duo got the impression of masses of people behind him. Heero had white wings, and stood in a nimbus of white light. And himself...  
  
Duo craned his head back and saw two black wings rising up behind him. There was a field of blackness around him, and a scythe in his right hand. Of course. I'm Death.  
  
"It's coming," Quatre said with supernatural calm, and in the dream, Duo tensed. He didn't know what was coming, but he knew it was evil and had to be stopped. They were all going to die in the upcoming battle, but it didn't matter, as long as they stopped the enemy.   
  
"They're going to wish they'd never been born," Duo said, and grinned.  
  
"Hn," Heero said.  
  
Then... somehow... the enemy was behind them. They were too late! They hadn't been fast enough, and now they were too late! Duo struggled to get around to face his enemy, but he couldn't move fast enough, and he saw the blade descending towards his chest...  
  
There was a stinging in his cheek, and Duo opened his eyes and sat up, automatically reaching for a knife that wasn't there. Wufei glared at him. "Must you talk incessantly, even in your sleep?"  
  
"I... I had a dream," Duo stammered.  
  
"You too?" Wufei looked disgusted. "I can't believe I shared a dream with you."  
  
"You mean we all had the same dream?" Duo asked.  
  
"We were there, weren't we?"  
  
Duo tried to figure out what was wrong with that statement - it seemed to him that there was something illogical there - but was interrupted by a low groan. He looked over to see Trowa leaning over Quatre, who was lying on the cot, tossing in his sleep. Trowa gently shook his shoulder, and Quatre suddenly sat upright, his eyes were more than a little wild. "It's coming! We have to stop it!" he shouted.  
  
"We know. We dreamed it too," Trowa told him.   
  
Quatre stood up. His entire body was glowing faintly, providing illumination to what would normally be a pitch-black room. "Come on," he said, his voice taking on an air of authority it hadn't had before. "We have to leave now."  
  
"How are we going to do that?" Duo asked, not sarcastically. He knew he could do things that no one else could, that no one would want to do, but he didn't know what Quatre could do.   
  
Quatre's eyes were half-closed, then he opened them. "They're not watching us," he stated confidently. "I can hold an illusion for... I can do it as long as I want. I can cast an illusion of invisibility on all of us, and when they open the gate to change the guard, we can slip out of here. But..."  
  
"But what?" Heero asked.  
  
"I don't want to leave all the others here," Quatre said. "I can hold the illusion on everyone, but there's a limit to the number of people we can sneak out through the gate. If there was more time... but we have to leave now." Quatre looked miserable at the thought of abandoning the normal mages.  
  
"That... will not be a problem," Wufei said, stepping forward. "Can you hold an illusion of normalcy on a part of the fence?"  
  
"Yes," Quatre said, a faint gleam of hope in his eyes.  
  
"Then we will sneak them out through the hole in the fence."  
  
"What hole in the fence?"  
  
"The one I will make." Wufei flexed his fingers, and fire danced in the air around them.  
  
Everyone stared at him.  
  
"All right," Quatre said. "We'll do it." He muttered to himself for a few seconds, then everyone disappeared. At least, that what it looked like. Duo knew that they were still there, just invisible. Quatre hadn't been kidding when he said he could do illusions. Duo could do a few minor illusions - most of his talents lay elsewhere - but Quatre was amazing. He was so much better than anyone Duo had ever seen that there was simply no comparison.   
  
"All right," Quatre's voice seemed to be coming from out of thin air. "Wufei, you know that little stretch of fence between the support beam and the third guard tower?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Anything you do in that area they won't be able to see."  
  
"Hai."  
  
Duo didn't know what that meant, but it sounded like agreement. The door flap moved as Wufei pushed it aside and exited.  
  
"All right, I'll go get everyone else. Then we can leave."  
  
Duo was seized by a sudden fear. Things had been so crazy so far that he hadn't had time to worry about his missing necklace, but if they were leaving, he wouldn't be able to find it. "Wait! I know this sounds stupid, but do you have any idea where they would have put my clothes? There was something with them..."  
  
"I hid it," Heero said. "I'll retrieve it." The canvas moved again as Heero left.  
  
"Duo, wait here. I have to go get people," Quatre said.  
  
"I understand. Thank you," Duo whispered, somehow knowing that Quatre had been responsible for saving his things.  
  
The canvas moved twice as both Trowa and Quatre left, leaving Duo in the pitch-black room. A few seconds later he heard the canvas move once again and a small bundle of cloth appeared as Heero moved it out of the bubble of invisibility. "Here," he said shortly.  
  
Duo quickly undid the ties that held the bundle closed. Almost immediately he relaxed as he felt the metal cross that the faeries had given him. He didn't know the significance of the symbol, but it was all he had left from the faeries, and he didn't want to loose it. He quickly slipped the necklace on and stuck it under his shirt, promising himself he'd find (or steal) some decent clothes first chance he got. After all, he had an image to maintain. "Thanks."  
  
"Hn." The canvas moved again, and Duo followed - he thought - Heero out into the open. It was much brighter outside due to several torches, and Duo was relieved to see that the invisibility held in the light as well. The door to the bars that separated them from the rest of the compound was already open.  
  
Suddenly a hand gripped Duo's wrist like a vice and dragged him through the gate and to a part of the fence. Duo was fascinated to find out that he could sense Wufei and Heero beside him without seeing them, and farther away, he could sense Quatre and Trowa. He could even tell which was which.   
  
"It's done," Wufei reported.   
  
Duo reached around Wufei - somehow he could even tell exactly where Wufei was standing - and touched the wall. It looked normal, but he felt a hold, three feet in diameter. The edges were still warm.  
  
"Not bad," he said approvingly.  
  
"Shut up."  
  
Trowa came up, leading about half of the prisoners behind them. "We're on the edge of the city. Once you're out, head north. There's a forest there we can hide in and regroup. I'm heading back for the other group."  
  
Duo felt a woman's hand placed in his own. "Come on," he whispered to her, guessing that they were all holding hands to avoid being separated. "I know where we're going. There's a hole in the wall. We're through it and than we're out of here. Heero will follow to make sure no one gets lost. Hold on tight, we're almost free."  
  
"Thank the gods," the woman breathed.  
  
Duo kept an 'eye' on Quatre and Trowa as he led his group through the open fields, keeping a wary eye out for a sign that the illusion of invisibility was slipping. This illusion had held for longer than any he'd ever seen, and the ones he'd seen had only been on one person. How long could Quatre keep this up?  
  
He saw when Wufei started leading the second group away from the compound, but noticed with a frown that neither Quatre nor Trowa was with that second group. "All right, everyone stop! But keep holding hands!" he called out as loud as he dared. Sighs of relief told him that the former prisoners were already exhausted and grateful for a rest. He felt Heero come up from the rear of the line.   
  
"What are you doing?" he asked in that flat voice of his.   
  
"They need rest. They probably haven't walked any farther than across the damn prison in months, if not years!" Duo snapped, showing his irritation with the other boy's callousness. "Besides, Quatre and Trowa aren't with the second group."  
  
"I know."  
  
"Aren't you just a little bit concerned about them?"  
  
"They can take care of themselves. If they can't, then we'll go on without them."  
  
Duo's jaw dropped open. "Don't you care at all about them?!" he exploded. "You've been living with them for what... months, years? Don't you care?"  
  
Heero didn't say anything, and since they were both still invisible, Duo couldn't see his face, but he was willing to bet that it was the same expressionless mask that he'd worn ever since Duo first saw him. Duo wasn't fooled by the mask - he wore a mask of his own, that of the foolish joker, so that people wouldn't see the monster that he really was - just because Heero wore a mask of not having emotions didn't mean that he didn't have them. But Heero did a better job of wearing the mask then anyone he'd ever seen.  
  
"Come on," Duo muttered. "We'd better get them moving again. If they are caught, we'll lose the illusion pretty quick, even if they don't kill him."  
  
He felt a ripple of surprise, quickly suppressed, coming from Heero. Didn't think I had it in me, did you? he thought with a kind of savage satisfaction. I've done far worse before. I'm Death, and I kill everyone who gets close to me. You think that a few more makes any difference? But that thought led to another, more uncomfortable. Everyone I've ever cared about has died. As soon as everyone's safe, I'll leave. I don't want to kill all of them, even Heero.  
  
They made it to the forest with no more incidents, and long before they reached the safety of the trees, Duo 'saw' Quatre and Trowa start to follow them, and breathed a silent sigh of relief. No one had died yet.   
  
It was distinctly uncomfortable, sitting around in the dark woods while they were all still invisible, listening to people speaking in whispers and the occasional sound of crying. Wufei's group arrived about twenty minutes after them, and there was more confusion as they tried to get themselves seated without stepping on those who had arrived earlier. They didn't have much success, and finally they just sat wherever they happened to be standing.  
  
Quatre and Trowa arrived about ten minutes after that. Duo felt them approaching, and when they reached the edge of the glade, Quatre called, "Is everyone here?"  
  
"We're all here, somewhere," Duo told him. He felt the faint whisper of magic tingle in the air around him and across his skin, and everyone suddenly became visible again. There was a startled gasp from the group of normal mages, then they all got up and started moving around, making sure that loved ones were near and safe. Finally, when it was beginning to get loud enough to make Duo nervous, Quatre called them to attention.   
  
Duo was surprised when the former prisoners automatically obeyed him. It was a sign of how much respect they had for him. Was this something that all rich noblemen were taught, or was Quatre something different? His personal experience made him lean towards the latter choice.  
  
"All right," Quatre said, emptying a bag onto the ground. He was still faintly glowing, providing enough illumination to see. Duo noted that the former prisoners both moved closer to him and tried to pull away. They were drawn to the light, but he was different, and frightening, too. Over a hundred of the small pendants that the Hunters used to protect themselves fell onto the ground, along with several larger crystals. "I've stolen all the seeking crystals they had," he explained, pointing to the larger crystals. "So they won't be able to find us. I'll spell each of these pendants to hold an illusion of full humanity on us, so they won't be able to tell that we're mages. After that, we should be safe. Those of you who still have families who you can trust..." he hesitated for a fraction of a second. "Can go back to them. I'm sorry, but the rest of you will have to start over. But you should be safe. Just be very, very careful about using your powers. All right, Evie, come over here," he gestured to a small boy. The boy came running over, and looked up at Quatre with trust in his eyes.  
  
"Yes, Lord Quatre?" he asked.  
  
"Just stay still, this will only take a few minutes." He stared thoughtfully at the boy, then closed his eyes, his fist closing tightly around one of the smaller pendants. He started muttering to himself. After less than a minute he opened his eyes, and placed the pendant around the boy's neck. There was an immediate change, and it was obvious that the boy looked entirely human. Duo knew well the physical changes that led normal humans to call the human mages faeries - the long, pointed ears, for one thing. They also tended to have rather large eyes, and long, thin bodies that were still incredibly strong. Evie now had short, rounded ears, squinty eyes, and was a little pudgier than he'd been a moment before. He barely looked like himself anymore. "Now don't ever take that off," he warned the boy, who nodded and backed up.  
  
Quatre quickly moved on to the next person. One by one, he worked his way through the crowd, and one by one, the distinguishing marks of the human mages disappeared. We may look a little like faeries, but we most certainly aren't! Duo thought, watching another transformation. He should know, he'd lived with one faery clan for several years. The true faeries had iridescent wings sprouting out of their back, pale blue or lavender skin, and rarely grew over three feet tall. He hadn't been much taller, himself, at the time. The faeries were also irrevocably bound to their homes, their forests, and could never leave them. In return, they had forest-magic to defend themselves. And the faeries lived a very long time, if there weren't any accidents.  
  
Accidents... yeah. Their first mistake was in giving me shelter at all. I kill everyone I'm close to... Duo renewed his personal promise that as soon as he could, he'd leave. He didn't want to kill anyone else.   
  
It was almost dawn before Quatre had finished. Towards the end, people started drifting off in twos and threes and tens. They'd been making plans while Quatre worked. Some had homes that they thought they could return to, and offered sanctuary to a few others. Others knew of old friends who could help them get a start. One was actually the younger son of a wealthy landowner, and took over a dozen with him, confident that he could find places for all of them, at least temporarily.   
  
Duo noticed that although everyone thanked Quatre profusely, all but a few avoided actually touching him, and a few refused to make eye contact, either. Duo saw the pain in Quatre's eyes when that happened, and clenched his fists. Lousy ungrateful jerks. He just risked his life to free them, he waited all this time when he could have left at any time, and they won't even shake his hand.  
  
Finally only the five of them were left. Quatre reached with shaking hands for the last of the pendants. "Come on," he said wearily. "There's just the five of us left." He glanced at Trowa, and then frowned, concentrating on the crystal in his hand. After a minute he stopped mumbling and handed the pendant to Trowa. "Here," he murmured. By now his hands were shaking so badly that it would have taken a fool not to notice it.  
  
Trowa grasped the pendant, then grabbed Quatre's wrist with his other hand. "What's wrong?"  
  
"Nothing. I'm just a little tired," Quatre said, snatching his arm back. "Putting spells in crystals is harder than just normal illusions. You have to put... a lot more into them. It's fine, I'll be all right." He smiled weakly. "You know, I've never been tired before. This is kind of weird." He reached for another pendant, but Trowa grasped his arm.   
"No. Stop now. You can wait a few hours, rest, and finish later."  
  
"No!" Quatre exclaimed. "I've got to finish this!" He snatched up another pendant before Trowa could do anything to stop him. Duo remembered the one time he'd seen a mage cast a spell into a stone - the mage had been unconscious for weeks afterwards. There had been over a hundred prisoners...  
  
Quatre did manage to finish making pendants for all of them, but when he finished he was so weak he could barely walk. "I'll be fine," he tried to tell them, but when his legs collapsed out from under him, Trowa and Wufei supported him from either side and carried him to a log to sit down. "What do we do now?" Trowa asked quietly of the group in general.  
  
"We can't do anything until he's healed," Heero said matter-of-factly. He glanced around. "Do any of you have any sort of special healing powers?" he asked.   
  
They all shook their heads. Not unless you want him dead, Duo added mentally.   
Heero frowned furiously, as if this was somehow their fault, then bent by Quatre's side. Trowa grabbed his arm, and then he held out a glowing hand and passed it over Quatre's body. Quatre's eyes flickered open as Trowa collapsed across his lap. "Not again!" he cried, and his entire body lit up again. He wrapped his arms around Trowa's arms and chest. "Stop doing that for me!" he demanded as Trowa shook his head slightly and woke up. He stiffened, and Quatre let go of him.   
  
"Quatre, can you walk?" Heero asked. "We need to get farther away from the compound. They'll be discovering that we escaped soon."   
  
Quatre nodded, then gestured, and they all disappeared again. Duo heard Heero's surprised grunt.  
  
"Hey, where are we going, anyway?" Duo complained. He'd just stick with them for a little while, until he was sure they'd survive on their own. No one knew the streets like he did - they might be helpless out in the real world. It was possible. Maybe.  
  
"I... we have to go north," Quatre said. "Can't you feel it? It's like we were waiting for you to arrive before we could leave the compound. The five of us have something very important that we have to do, and we have to go north to do it."  
  
"Do what? Fight off Treize's mysterious threat?" Duo said sarcastically.  
  
"He did some very evil things," Quatre said quietly. "But he wasn't lying about those prophecies. There's something big coming, and we're all tied up in it somehow."  
  
"Fine, whatever. If it makes you happy... north it is!" Duo agreed, although he had the same drive that Quatre had described, pulling him north. He doubted he could go anywhere else right now, not with the damn buzzing in his brain...  
  
Damn it, I want to be moving away from these guys, not with them! Everyone near me gets killed sooner or later! How am I going to avoid that if we have to go somewhere together because of what... what the hell is this anyhow? I don't believe all that crap about prophesies... do I?  
  



	3. Part 2

"Your majesty!"  
  
Treize looked up as one of his messengers came running up to him, holding a piece of parchment in his hand. Then his vision blurred slightly, and he raised a hand to his head. He hadn't slept a full night's sleep in over a week, ever since all of his captive mages had escaped. He hadn't succeeded in capturing a single one of them yet - it was as if they'd all been swallowed up by the earth. But no one could completely disappear - they had to be out there somewhere, he just hadn't found them yet.  
  
Or so I believe. I also believed that I had them all completely cowed, even young Quatre and his group. I believed that there was no way for them to escape past the bars and walls and guards, and I believed that after they escaped, I would easily be able to recapture them. All mages have rather distinctive marks, after all. How could they be hiding their features? There hasn't been a drastic increase in the number of people wearing hoods, I'm watching for that. I don't even have the faintest idea as to how they escaped.  
  
"Any news about the escaped faeries?' he asked hopefully.  
  
"No sir, I'm from the group of scholars you hired to search through your libraries..." the man seemed uncertain of himself now, when before he'd nearly been bursting with pride. Treize cursed his carelessness - he knew the difference between the uniform of a household messenger and one that came from outside the palace.  
  
"My apologies," he said with what grace he could muster in his current state. "You have news?"  
  
"Yes, my lord." He held the piece of parchment out in front of him. "We found a clearer description in one of the most ancient texts of prophesy of those who are destined to defend the world from the evil. There are five of them, lord, and they... well, the descriptions are quite usual. All the pertinent information is on that page."  
  
"Thank you very much. Please convey my thanks to all of them, and ask them to continue their fine work."  
  
"Yes, your majesty." The messenger bowed, and left him alone with the parchment.   
  
Treize took a sip of tea, and settled back into his most comfortable chair, checked to make sure he had fresh candles, and then started to read the paper. "The five will not come into their full powers until they are drawn together by seeming circumstance, but by a pawn of prophesy itself. Only then will they come into their full powers, drawn from five great sources: life, death, magic, nature, and the people who must be protected. And the five fated warriors shall earn their names, the Solemn Soldier, the Laughing Killer, the Foreign Dragon, the Masked Clown, and the Desert Prince..."  
  
Desert Prince? Oh, gods no.  
  
Quatre, dear sweet innocent, dangerous Quatre had sometimes been called the Prince of the Desert by his people before he was dubbed an animal and brought here. And there were five... It couldn't be coincidence. The Foreign Dragon - the black-haired foreigner, who came from a land where they named their families after animals. The Solemn Soldier - the dark-haired boy who never spoke. The one with the reddish hair had come from a circus of some sort, he remembered, where he'd been a clown. And that meant that the new boy, the one with the long hair, must be the Laughing Killer. The Hunters who'd captured him had said there'd been a disturbing smile on his face as he killed half of them.  
  
I had them, and I let them slip through my fingers, he thought, outraged. Then his mind was brought back to the quote from the text. "...seeming circumstance, but by a pawn of prophesy itself..." A pawn of prophesy?! he thought, his outrage growing.  
  
The paper crumbled in his hands before he got control of himself. He stood up and walked across the room to stand in front of the mirror, carefully checking his image to see if there were any visible signs of his momentary loss of control. There weren't any, but he carefully combed his hair back, just to be sure.  
  
I will not be a pawn! I will not be incidental in the greatest test humanity has experienced in the last five thousand years. Now that I know who they are, I can abandon the search for the others, and concentrate on the important ones. I must have them in my hands when the evil arrives.  
  
Treize turned to give orders to that effect, but for some reason he paused and looked in the mirror at his reflection again. On an impulse, he reached under his shirt and withdrew the crystal pendant he always wore. He pulled it over his head, and watched critically as his image shimmered, ears lengthening and sharpening to points, his eyes getting slightly larger and his body lengthening slightly. He traced the point of his ear with one hand, then slipped the pendant back on and shoved it under his clothes. He checked one more time in the mirror to make sure the illusion was still solid, then went to give orders to his men.  
  
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Wufei started as the wind succeeded in tearing the edge of his cloak's hood out of his hand, sending yet another burst of cold rain down his back. He snarled a few choice curses, then regrasped the trailing end of his hood and pulled it back over his head. Not that it mattered - he was already soaked to the bone, they all were, but the hood kept new cold water from running down his back, and kept the wind from hitting him directly. At least by now his body heat had warmed most of the water in his clothes.  
  
His clothes... there was yet another source of dissatisfaction for the last surviving member of the Dragon Clan. The impossible thief, Duo, had stolen 'regular' clothes for all of them the first night they were out, and while these were marginally better than the slaves' clothes that had been forced upon them while they were in captivity, they did nothing for his sense of dignity. At his insistence, Duo had gotten him a proper white shirt and loose dark pants, not exactly the proper style, but close. Then he'd felt the need to improvise, because he thought that Wufei didn't match *his* idea of what a foreigner should look like. That's where the bright *green* over-shirt came in, and the flamboyantly embroidered red cloak that was forever slipping off his head.  
  
:There's a fairly large town another half-mile up the road,: Quatre's voice said into his head. That particular talent had appeared the third day of their journey, and was yet another source of irritation (one of many) on this trip. :We might as well stop there for the night. There's no way we'll make the next village beyond it.:  
  
:I'm happy to report that our funds are sufficient to stay in a decent lodge tonight,: Duo reported cheerfully. :Thanks to the skills of a certain master thief, used on the person of that son of a bitch who tried to run us off the road this morning. No, no, there's no need to thank me for exercising my brilliance on so worthy an individual. I know it was close to perfect.:  
  
:Duo...:  
  
:Yeah, Heero?:  
  
:Shut up.:  
  
Wufei breathed a silent sigh of relief. The main problem with this silent mental communication is that there was no way to shut Duo out. So they were all forced to listen to his endless babbling about all sorts of topics. He might have listened to Quatre if the boy had asked him to stop, but Quatre had been raised a nobleman and was too polite to tell Duo to shut up. That left the other three, and of them, Heero was the only one he listened to, for some strange reason. If Heero told him to shut up, he usually did - at least for a little while.   
  
They reached the town less than a half-hour later and headed inside the first boarding place they saw. Duo quickly arranged for them to have a room with several beds for the night, asked that dinner be sent up to them, and then they quickly walked through the tavern and up the stairs to the room, avoiding the boisterous and loud drinkers downstairs.   
Quatre was shivering violently as he removed his cloak, hanging it neatly on a hook before sinking onto the nearest cot. Trowa immediately removed his cloak and walked over to Quatre. Wufei gave a snort of disgust at Quatre's weakness, and at their refusal to acknowledge the obvious bond between the two. In Quatre's defense, he didn't have much experience in traveling in anything but a carriage. He was probably doing the best he could, and he never complained, but each night he looked worse than the night before, and they'd only been traveling for a week. Much longer and he wasn't going to be able to move at all. There has to be another way to get... wherever we're going, he thought, dissatisfied with the entire issue. None of them wanted to talk about whatever it was that was keeping them together and always driving them north.  
  
:Is anyone watching?: Quatre asked, sniffling. He must have picked up a cold today, as well. That would slow them down, too.  
  
"No," Heero replied after a moment's silence.  
  
Quatre immediately began to glow as he healed himself. That was the only reason he'd been able to keep up so far, but magical healing wasn't a replacement for just being in shape and having strength, as it was becoming painfully clear. Wufei made a short gesture with his hand, igniting the logs he saw laid out in the fireplace. The others immediately moved around the fireplace, holding out their hands and rubbing them, trying to restore feeling to their extremities.   
  
Despite the fact that they'd been traveling together for a week now, Wufei knew very little more about his companions then he had after living in captivity with them. He knew nothing more about whatever powers they possessed, or anything about their pasts. Well, Quatre's past was hardly a secret - half the country knew about him, and it was impossible not to know that Duo was a street urchin, not with him dubbing himself the King of Thieves all the time. But he knew nothing else about the boy. There was certainly no sign that he was anything but a joking, laughing, endlessly-talking fool, but he had managed to kill six Hunters. Maybe it had been some sort of accident. At least his thieving skills were keeping them fed, and had gotten all of the collars off their necks. Wufei still found himself rubbing his neck three and four times every hour, to make sure that it was really gone.  
  
As usual, they sat in silence, broken only by Duo's babble and occasional remarks from Quatre or Heero, usually asking him for a little bit of quiet, or to shut up, respectively. Duo did, and then they sat in silence until food arrived. They ate it in the same silence, and then Quatre immediately collapsed into one of the cots, almost asleep before his body was completely on the thin mattress. Trowa silently got up and pushed him the rest of the way into the bed, tucking a blanket around him when he continued to shiver in his sleep.  
  
"This isn't working," Duo said unnecessarily. "He's trying, but he can't keep this up."  
  
"We can't leave him behind!" Wufei snapped, his irritation finally getting the better of him. He wasn't referring to any sort of honor debt, although he probably owed one to Quatre for all the times he'd healed him after a particularly brutal beating. But that wasn't what he was talking about. He was talking about the same thing that had been driving them northward. That same feeling was keeping them together, long past the point when Wufei would have liked to throw his hands up in disgust and walk away from the lot of them. Sometimes these barbarians were so uncivilized that it astonished him. And to think that they called his people primitive!  
  
But it was the fact that it seemed that he had completely lost control of his life that was really bothering him. Even in the compound, he'd had a level of control over his own life, even if it was limited to irritating the guards by not reacting to their pathetic insults. Now... he was caught up in something that he had no control of, he didn't even know what it was, but it was controlling his every action. North, north, north... the drive hummed in his bones, and he hated it.  
  
"I wasn't talking on abandoning him!" Duo looked shocked. "Damn! What's with you! I was just saying that we've got to figure out something else. He's going to collapse completely in a few days."  
  
"What do you suggest?" Wufei asked acidly.   
  
"I don't know... I thought about stealing some horses, but that will really attract some attention, and we can't afford that right now. I'll work on it in the morning." Duo seemed to think it was his responsibility to provide for them. Granted, he had been doing most of the providing, by keeping up a steady stream of thefts from those they passed on the road. Surprisingly enough, Heero occasionally added a bit of money from his own efforts to the group pot.   
  
Duo glared at the storm outside. "It would sure help if we could get some decent weather tomorrow, for a change."  
  
Just like him to complain about something we can't change.  
  
"Yes, it would, wouldn't it," Trowa said softly, so softly that Wufei almost missed it, his eyes traveling to the window.  
  
As they all prepared to go to sleep, Wufei noticed Trowa standing by the window, staring outside at the storm. The storm had drastically increased in intensity since they came inside, and lightening flashed so often that it looked as bright as day outside. Wufei stared at the flashes of lightening reflecting off of Trowa's one visible eye. It might have been his imagination, but as he fell asleep, Wufei thought that he might have seen lightening in Trowa's eye even when there was none outside  
  
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The next morning the sun shone brightly in a clear sky. When Quatre woke, he walked immediately walked over to the window, looked out of it, and exclaimed softly, "What a beautiful day!" Then he glanced at Heero, who was awake and staring at him, and fell silent.   
  
Heero had already been up for a few hours - he didn't need much sleep. It would take a lot more exercise then just walking all day in a rainstorm to tire him out. He'd already ordered breakfast for everyone, which Quatre sat down and started eating without any more attempts at conversation, for which Heero was grateful.   
  
For months, Quatre had been the most talkative of the group in the compound, but at least he had the good sense not to try to fill the silence with meaningless chatter. Unlike the newest addition to their group... Heero gritted his teeth unconsciously at the thought of the endless stream of babble that came out of the braided boy's mouth. It didn't seem to matter to him whether or not he had anything of interest, or value, to say, he just kept talking no matter what.  
  
Quatre finished eating, neatly put his utensils on the side of the plate, then looked sharply at Trowa. "Heero, what did Trowa do last night after I fell asleep?" he asked suddenly.  
  
"Nothing."  
  
"Nothing? Are you sure?"  
  
Heero treated Quatre to one of his coldest glares. The blond boy should have known better than to ask a question like that.  
  
Quatre flushed and glanced down at his feet. "Sorry." A second later he raised his head again and stared at Trowa.  
  
After a few minutes of this, Heero's curiosity got the better of him. "Why?"  
  
"He's exhausted, even after a full night's sleep. I can feel it." Quatre got to his feet and walked over to stand beside Trowa's cot. Suddenly his eyes went vacant, and Heero felt the faintest hint of a tingle at the back of his neck as Quatre searched their room and the rest of the building for unseen observers. He's good, Heero was forced to grudgingly admit. Whatever weaknesses Quatre had physically, he was the strongest, most controlled, and most adept mage Heero had ever seen or heard of since the Mage Wars.  
  
After a few seconds Quatre's eyes focused again, and he held one glowing hand over Trowa's body for a minute. Trowa's body glowed as Quatre restored his energy. Then Quatre moved to the other two, pausing for a few seconds over each of them to make sure they had full energy reserves. Then he looked at Heero. "Do you want me to..." he trailed off as Heero glared at him.  
  
The others woke up a few minutes later, and ate a mostly silent meal, because Duo was more interested in getting as much food into his mouth in as little time as possible than he was in talking. Heero reveled in the silence, which he knew wouldn't last.   
  
As soon as they finished eating, they left the town, and continued on north. Almost immediately Duo started talking again, drifting from one topic to another as soon as the thoughts occurred to him. After a few minutes, Heero simply shut the long-haired boy's voice out of his mind. It was almost as good as not having to listen to Duo at all.   
  
As they trudged down the road, Heero considered the strange drive that was forcing them all northward. He disliked not knowing what it was that was pushing them, but since he couldn't do anything about it, at least not right now, he pushed the matter out of his mind. For now, he concentrated on where they were going - north. There wasn't much that was north of here. In Oz, there were a bunch of villages surrounded by farmland, and then there were a few major cities close to the border. Beyond them was the Sank kingdom, and beyond that was the Empire of Romafella. Beyond the Empire was a vast expanse of wastelands.   
  
Heero hoped that they weren't going to the wastelands. They had that name for a reason, and he doubted that he could survive more than a few weeks up there. He doubted the others would last more than a few days, at the most.   
  
His mind turned the problem over in his head. If they were headed for the wastelands, there was nothing he could do. Therefore, it was more logical to assume for now that they were heading either to one of the cities or one of the two kingdoms to the north. That, at least, he could plan for.   
  
A few minutes later he discovered, to his dismay, that this was true, but only in the broadest sense. He had no way of narrowing down the list of possible destinations without any more information, information he didn't have. Until he learned more about whatever was driving them northward, there was no good way of planning. He frowned in distaste - he hated leaving so much to chance.  
  
With a warrior's instinct, he sensed something on the road behind him, and his hand automatically reached for a sword that wasn't there. Silently cursing, he gripped his stolen knife instead, eyes fixed on the long train of wagons coming up the road. After a few seconds he relaxed marginally, going back to his state of wary alertness. The wagons weren't soldiers looking for them, more likely it was a caravan of sorts. No danger to us.  
  
Several minutes later, Duo broke off his chattering mid-sentence and turned to look behind them. "Who's that?" he asked.  
  
"Caravan," Heero grunted.  
  
"Do they have any guards?" Duo asked, surprising Heero by asking a relevant question.   
  
"No."  
  
"Too bad. Caravans without guards rarely have anything worth stealing," he said in a professional tone, and then proceeded to tell them yet another pointless story about a caravan he'd robbed at some point in the past.   
  
Heero noted that neither Wufei nor Trowa, who was currently in the lead, had bothered to turn around and look at the caravan, trusting that he would watch their backs. Heero spent another few minutes debating with himself whether their trust was an indication of weakness - he didn't know if they did this because they knew that he would not fail in any mission he set before himself, or if they did it because they were foolish and trusted too easily. He finally decided that it had to be the former - they'd lived with him for months, and it would take a true fool not to realize that he rarely failed at any mission, much less something as simple as watching the road behind them. Their backs were safe while he was on guard.  
  
Several minutes later, Heero automatically stepped off the side of the road as the caravan caught up with them, noting in disgust that even the old horses pulling wagons were moving faster than his group. They definitely had to find someway to move faster. But Duo had been right, they couldn't leave Quatre behind...  
  
As the first wagon passed him, Heero found out that his earlier assumption that the wagons were a caravan was incorrect. It was a traveling show of some sort, he found out as he looked behind him and saw a couple of lions in a wheeled cage. So his initial assessment that the wagon train wasn't a danger had been correct, even if his guess about their nature wasn't correct. Still, it was an error, and he carefully memorized the image of the first wagon so he wouldn't make it again.   
  
The first wagon was driven by a middle-aged man with a thick black beard. A young girl with short red hair sat beside him, wearing some sort of costume. There was a large sign proclaiming the name of the show on the side of the wagon. Satisfied that their images were firmly fixed in his mind, Heero returned his attention to the ground in front of him, which was quite bumpy now that he was off the road.   
  
At least, he did that until the girl sitting on the head wagon suddenly jumped down off the seat, landing on the ground with unusual ease, shouting, "Trowa!" as she did so. She ran up to Trowa and grabbed his shoulder. "Trowa, where have you been? We were so worried about you when the soldiers took you..." she trailed off as Trowa turned around to look at her, and Heero saw that her eyes were fixed on Trowa's ears. "Oh, I'm sorry! I thought you were someone..." She trailed off.  
  
Trowa's one visible eye widened slightly. "Catherine?!" There was actually a hint of emotion in his voice. Heero checked a mental list he'd started out of boredom while they were still in the compound. This was the third time he'd heard Trowa say anything with any sort of emotion. That was one more time then he'd heard Wufei say a female's name, instead of calling them 'onna'.   
  
"Trowa, it is you!" the girl... Catherine... exclaimed. "But what happened to your ears? And how did you escape? What happened after the soldiers took you away? Who are these people?" the words tumbled out of her mouth at a rate that would have done Duo proud.   
  
Trowa got himself back under control and gasped Catherine's arm, pulling her away from the caravan.   
  
"Hey, boy!" the bearded man shouted. "What do you think... Trowa?" he exclaimed in shock. Then he carefully looked around, up and down the road, looking for possible over listeners. At least he had some idea of the danger they were all in. He glanced over his shoulder at the wagons behind him. "Hold up!" he shouted backwards. "We're stopping for lunch!" He pulled his wagon off the side of the road and tied the reigns to a hook on the wagons before jumping down. He examined Trowa's face. "You are Trowa," he said determinedly. "But what the hell happened to you?"  
  
Trowa glanced at Heero, who sent him a warning look. These people seemed friendly, but the girl had already proved that she couldn't keep her mouth shut. If either of them presented the slightest risk that his group would be caught and sent back to Treize, Heero wouldn't hesitate to kill the lot of them. Trowa saw his intentions and shook his head slightly. :Don't worry, they won't betray us. I'll take care of it,: Trowa told them, then steered the two of them away from the group and began talking to them in low tones.   
  
The other four, even Duo, waited quietly, listening to the soft tones, wondering what Trowa was saying, and how in the world he knew a bunch of circus performers.   
  
After several minutes, Trowa came back to them. "They're headed for the capital city of Sank, to perform at a birthday celebration for their queen. They're performing five other times on their way, and should be at their destination within a month. After that they turn and head back down into Oz, but they say that we're welcome to join them until then. At the very least, it will get us into the middle of the Sank kingdom, if we have to go that far. Even with the stops for shows, they'll make better time then we could on our own." He stopped and waited for a reaction from the others, who stared at him. It was the longest single statement Heero had ever heard him say.   
  
Duo was the first to recover. "Why are they willing to give us shelter, anyway? Do they know who and what we are?"  
  
"They know we're wanted by the crown, and that we did nothing to deserve such treatment. They'll do it because they protect their own."  
  
"Protect their own?" Duo repeated. "You were a circus performer?" Trowa nodded. "What did you do?"  
  
"I was a clown."  
  
Duo burst out laughing. "You must have been the unfunniest clown in the entire world!" he exclaimed.  
  
Wufei suddenly started coughing, and Quatre hid a small smile. "Is unfunniest a word?" he asked.   
  
"Are we going to stay with them?" Heero growled. He had no time for joking around, even if it was sort of amusing to think of Trowa as a clown.  
  
"I think we have to," Quatre said seriously. Everyone turned to stare at him now.  
  
"Why?" Heero growled.  
  
"I... I can't explain it, but I think they're here to help us." Quatre turned to Trowa. "Were they supposed to come by here?"  
  
Trowa frowned slightly. Well, the corners of his lips twitched. "No. They were supposed to be doing a loop around the towns in the south, but they got a special request to perform at the Queen's birthday celebration."  
  
"Queen!" Wufei snorted, somehow managing to put an entire conversation's worth of disgust into that one word.  
  
Quatre ignored him. "See? I think we were meant to go with them!" he exclaimed, cheerfully disregarding anything resembling logic. On the other hand, magic wasn't logical, so it was entirely possible that Quatre might actually know what he was talking about.   
  
Heero glared at Quatre, then turned to include everyone in the glare. If he could, he would have included the entire world. He hated not knowing enough to make any sort of plans.  
  
Trowa stared at him, unconcerned, and Duo finally said, "So I guess this means that we get to join the circus? Cool! I always thought that would be loads of fun!" It seemed to Heero that his joking smile was a little forced.  
  
----------------------------------------------------  
  
It was strange being back. Everything looked the same, even the people had hardly hanged in the year that he'd been away. On the surface, everything was just the same, but underneath...  
  
Underneath, he knew that no matter how much Catherine tried to pretend that nothing had happened, he had not come home. The circus had been a home to him, more so than any other place he'd ever stayed, and if he could have, he might have stayed here for the rest of his life, but that was before the Hunters came for him. Before they'd treated him like an animal. That had almost destroyed his mind. He thought he'd finally gotten away from his past...  
  
He couldn't remember what happened before the mercenaries arrived. The first thing he remembered was standing by the side of the road, at the edge of a town, as a group of mercenaries marched by. Then one of them turned to look at him, and grinned... reached down and pulled him up onto the horse, saying something about wanting a new servant. He had been lucky, in ways. He did have a home for eight years with the mercenaries, and if he was a slave, at least while he was with them he was safe from rapists and worse. He did learn a number of useful skills in that time, even his master couldn't take that from him. Some of the mercenaries were worse than others. Most were reasonably kind to him, and a few even looked at him as some sort of little brother, but the one who'd claimed him first beat him at the least excuse. He and his friends were the ones who tried to convince him that he wasn't human. More than once he'd been tied to a tree at night because his master told him that he was stupid, that he'd wander off and not be able to find his way back. He'd never believed a word his 'master' told him. Sometimes the others helped him, letting him hide in their tents to avoid punishments. They even taught him how to defend himself, and his 'master' allowed it, thinking that he'd never use it against him. He thought his silence meant that he was broken, that he really thought of himself as a slave or something less.   
  
He'd waited until he was strong enough to survive on his own, then had left in the middle of the night. Despite everything they'd done to him, he had no desire to kill them. After all, they had taken him in, even if it was as a slave. And they hadn't killed him, although they certainly could have when he became a liability during more than one of their operations.  
  
His 'master' and two friends came after him, and he killed them, feeling no remorse. All he wanted then was to be left alone. His master was the only one who really still wanted him as a slave, anyway, and they did leave him alone. He even saw a few of them a few years later, when he was working as a bounty hunter. A few had been angry, but most had been pretty calm about it, even admiring of his bravery in taking off on his own at the age of eleven. It had been different, during that one visit, almost brotherly, some of them, and Trowa had been tempted to stay, but he'd long since hardened his heart towards anything like caring. He collected his bounty and left.  
  
He worked as a bounty hunter for a year, but didn't really enjoy the work. He didn't want to be hunting people down for a living, but he had to do something, and fighting was the only thing he knew how to do. A circus happened to be in the area, and an idea occurred to him. It was a little crazy, but he had nothing to lose - if it didn't work, he could always go back to doing what he was doing now. There was a certain advantage in having no ties whatsoever.   
  
But it had worked, and he'd managed to join the circus as a juggler. He juggled the only thing he knew how to - knives - but that only looked more impressive than balls. Eventually he ended up working in an act with Catherine, who was a talented knife-thrower. She treated him just like a brother, and the rest of the circus was his extended family. It was the first time he'd ever been treated like that, and for the first time that he could remember, he was almost happy.   
  
He'd stayed with the circus for three years. Then the soldiers came for him. He fought them off the best he could, but there were too many of them, and finally they took Catherine hostage, threatened to kill her and the rest of his 'family' if he didn't surrender himself. He didn't have a choice - he turned himself over immediately.   
  
When they'd put that metal collar around his neck and stuck him in that cage, he'd lost his mind. It was like everything he'd gone through when the mercenaries first found him was repeating itself. He was almost expecting to see his master's face when he woke up in the mornings. He didn't remember much of the trip to the compound, and knew only that it had lasted several weeks. The first clear memory he had was of a cool hand on his forehead and a soothing voice. Still caught in the delusional dream that he was back with the mercenaries, Trowa reacted like a trapped animal - he attacked.  
  
He'd broken Quatre's wrist, but Quatre had simply healed himself, and never mentioned the incident again. It was Quatre who'd managed to bring him out of his brush with insanity by the simple method of treating him like a human being, and expecting that he act like one. He'd been in the compound for a year before they escaped. He could have escaped at any time, but as long as Quatre stayed there, he wouldn't leave either. Now he knew that Quatre could have left at any time, and Wufei... why had they been staying there? He strongly suspected that the reason for that was linked with whatever had driven them north, and was now conveniently providing transportation for them.  
  
Which brought him back to his unease with his current situation. He wasn't the same person he'd been when he was taken away, and he never could be again. There was some greater force at work in his life now, and like it or not, he had to respond to it. The Ringmaster understood. As far as Trowa knew, he had no other name, and was perfectly satisfied with that. The Ringmaster hadn't asked him if he wanted to start performing again, like Catherine had. The five boys helped out with ordinary, menial tasks, and didn't draw attention to themselves. The circus folk helped them keep their heads low whenever they passed through a town. They might not know the whole story, but they weren't stupid - Trowa was dragged off a year ago by a bunch of Oz soldiers, and now he returned with a bunch of boys who also appeared to be hiding, with his appearance radically changed through magical means. But they protected their own, so he considered himself relatively safe with them.  
  
Right now he and Quatre were sitting in the second wagon. He was driving it, while Quatre quietly dozed in the back. The blond boy was still recovering from their initial flight. Trowa suspected he'd never let any of them know how exhausted he really was. It would be just like him to try to spare them the worry. He's so self-sacrificing... Quatre gave so easily of his time, effort, and care, it was sometimes astonishing to the former mercenary. He'd be exhausted all the time if he ever tried to live like Quatre...  
  
He was jolted out of his thoughts as Duo came running up beside his wagon. Besides having an inexhaustible supply of subjects to talk about, Duo also had a rather large supply of energy, and had decided that he'd prefer walking to riding in one of the wagons. Heero and Wufei were also walking, although they walked sedately to the side of Trowa's wagon, occasionally throwing murderous glances at the ever-perky Duo.  
  
Duo had apparently gone to the back of the wagon train to check things out, and now he was back. That meant that the blissful cessation of chatter would end now.   
  
"What's the name of this area?" Duo asked. "It looks familiar."  
  
"That's Birnam Wood," Trowa said, nodding in the correct direction with his head. "And we're in the Valley of Donalbain.[1] Have you been here recently?"  
  
"No, not recently," Duo said, shaking his head. There was an unusual shadow in his violet eyes. "If I have been here, it would have been years ago. It's hard to tell sometimes, things look so different from the outside," he muttered, almost to himself. Trowa frowned, it was unlike Duo to be so quiet, but before he could question it, Duo started talking in a normal voice. "But, you know, it all starts to look the same after a while, when you've seen as much as I have..." Trowa sighed as the chatter resumed.  
  
"Hey, what's that?" Duo asked a few minutes later as Trowa guided his wagon after the Ringmaster's. The wagon train was turning slightly as the road turned, but to the right an old road, barely visible because of the grass that had grown on top of it, went on in a straight line.  
  
"It's the old road," Trowa told him.  
  
"What's wrong with it?"  
  
"Nothing."  
  
"So why don't we use it? I know the road is that way," he said, pointing off down the old road. "So why are we going this way?"  
  
"We're detouring around the forest. No one likes to go too close to it, and the old road came within a few hundred feet of it. The new one stays a healthy distance from the forest at all times."  
  
"Why don't they like the forest?"  
  
"There are rumors that there are faeries living there."   
  
"Oh." Suddenly Duo sounded very interested. With a sly look at Trowa, he asked, "Do you believe in faeries, Trowa? Real faeries, I mean, not what they call us."  
  
"They exist."  
  
"How do you know? Have you ever seen one?" Duo asked.  
  
Trowa grunted, unhappy with the way this discussion was going. "Why the interest?" he asked, hoping to turn it around, away from dangerous questions.   
  
"No reason," Duo said, and then actually fell silent. Something about the question really bothered him.  
  
They both looked back as Quatre started moaning loudly as he slept, shaking his head back and forth as his lips moved silently. "Quatre?" Trowa called as Duo leapt up to sit beside him on the seat. Quatre didn't respond, and Trowa handed Duo the reins and climbed into the back seat. He shook Quatre's shoulder, but Quatre still didn't respond.   
  
Growing alarmed now, Trowa reached into Quatre's mind. :Wake up!:  
  
:I can't, I'm trying!: Quatre shouted. :I can hear you, but I can't wake up. You've got to warn everyone, something's coming!:  
  
:What's coming?: Duo asked from the seat of the wagon, and Trowa felt the others joining in the silent discussion.  
  
:I don't know.:  
  
:Why can't you wake up?:  
  
:They didn't want me to warn you. It's a spell of some sort, but its nothing like anything I've ever seen before. I don't know how to counteract it.:  
  
Trowa looked up as Wufei climbed in the back of the wagon. "Let me see him," he said shortly, and Trowa backed up as Heero also climbed inside. Wufei stared at Quatre for a few seconds, then held out one of his hands. There was a flash of red light, then Quatre started and suddenly sat up.  
  
"They're coming!" he shouted, eyes wild.  
  
"You told us that already," Trowa said, trying to be patient despite his desire to throw his arms around Quatre's shoulders. He'd been... frightened, more frightened then he could remember being in years, since he froze his heart to protect himself. "What's coming?"  
  
"I don't know," Quatre said, brow furrowed in concentration. He shook his head. "I can't tell."  
  
"Hey guys," came Duo's voice. He sounded very nervous. "You might want to come out here."  
  
A shiver ran down Trowa's spine as he looked out of the back of the wagon and saw only white. It was fog, but unlike any fog he'd ever seen, thicker and heavier, making it difficult to breath as it started to seep into the wagon itself. It was completely unnatural, and Trowa's skin crawled. He tried to 'look' through it, and saw that the other wagons that should have been there, weren't. "Catherine!" he gasped despite himself and looked out the front of the wagon. He could still see the wagon in front of them - barely, and without thinking, used his power to clear a path to the other wagon. "Catherine! Sir! Get back here!" he called, hearing urgency in his own voice. A few seconds later both Catherine and the Ringmaster came flying out of the back of the wagon and jumped into his own.  
  
The fog, which had somehow been fighting back against his power, suddenly surged, and the fog collapsed back across the gap he'd created, and the other wagon disappeared completely.   
  
"Trowa, what's going on?!" Catherine cried, fear in her voice.   
  
"Get in the back," he told her, and she and the Ringmaster obediently climbed into the back as the other boys peered out.   
  
"It just snuck up behind us," Duo replied in a shaken voice. "I just came up and all of a sudden it was everywhere!"  
  
"Is this the danger?" Heero asked Quatre, who shook his head.  
  
"This was just to separate us from the others. The real threat is still coming."  
  
"Can you tell what it is yet?"  
  
Quatre started to shake his head again, then stopped. "Maybe I can... Stop the horse, Duo," he instructed. Once the slightly rocking of the wagon had stopped, Quatre shook his head, throwing his blond hair out of his eyes. "This is really sensitive, and I've only tried it a few times," he warned. "Don't, whatever you do, interrupt me or touch me. We really don't want this backfiring on us."  
  
They carefully backed away from him. Quatre's hands started to glow, and his lips moved quickly as he muttered to himself. The glow left his hands and formed a large ball of light floating in the air just in front of him. The light ball formed a large ring in the air, then collapsed in on itself. Quatre's frown deepened, and his lips were pressed in a thin line as he glared at the ball of light in front of him. Once again it formed a ring, and then collapsed in on itself. By now there was sweat forming on Quatre's brow, and his breathing was becoming labored. This time he practically snarled at the light, which suddenly formed a ring again, and this time, it stayed in that shape. Within the ring, images began to form.   
  
At first there was nothing but endlessly swirling mist, the kind that blanketed every inch of the wagon. Trowa kept a firm grip on the edge of the seat, just in case, since he could barely see his own hands anymore. The only thing clearly visible was the glowing ring of light and the images within it. Suddenly the fog in the image was swept away, revealing several... creatures. He couldn't think of any other name for them. They were vaguely humanoid, but entirely black and covered with shiny armor that seemed to be part of their bodies, something like an ant. Slime dripped from sharp-toothed, large mouths, and he could see sharpened claws.  
  
Wufei cursed in his own language. It was a curse of recognition.  
  
"You know what those things are?" Duo asked very quietly. At least he had the sense not to distract Quatre while he was casting this spell.   
  
"They are... your language does not have the proper word. The closest I can say is demon. They are brought... summoned here from another realm to kill, and then they can return."  
  
"How did you come by this information?" Heero asked.  
  
"Demons like those killed my entire Clan!" Wufei hissed in anger. "I barely escaped, and I vowed to avenge them, so I found out all I could about the demons."  
  
"Trowa, I... by the gods!" Catherine exclaimed as she saw Quatre standing there, hands held out in front of him in front of a glowing ring with images of monsters inside. She would have said more, but Duo leaped at her and clamped a hand over her mouth, preventing any speech. His other arm he wrapped around her waist, trapping her arms at her side.  
  
He was just in time, because as Catherine had started speaking, the ring had wobbled dangerously, and Quatre had moaned, holding his hands up to protect himself from something. When Catherine fell silent, he managed to get the spell back under control.   
  
"He's casting a very dangerous spell right now," Duo said in low tones. "If you distract him, he could lose control of it, and no one knows what it will do. Do you understand?"  
  
Catherine let out a frightened squeak, but she stopped struggling.  
  
"How can you kill them?" Heero asked Wufei in a low voice.   
  
"You can't," Wufei said, staring at the image. "They're immortal. The only way you can escape is to run, and stay ahead of them until they're drawn back to their own world. Normally they stay until they've completed their mission, but there's a time limit. They usually complete the mission before then, but if you avoid them for two days, they get pulled back to their own realm no matter what. That's how I escaped."  
  
"We're not going to be able to stay ahead of them for two days," Duo said unnecessarily as they watched the creatures running through the fog.  
  
"I can't hold this up much longer..." Quatre murmured.  
  
Heero turned to Quatre. "Can you tell who they're hunting?"  
  
Quatre's face twisted with exhaustion, but the image in the ring changed, to show... the five of them. But not the five of them as they were, it was the five of them as they'd appeared in the dream, with wings sprouting out of their backs and unnatural light glistening around them. Then the ring twisted, and collapsed in on itself, and the ball disappeared. Suddenly the fog seemed twice as thick. "Sorry, I couldn't hold it," Quatre whispered as he collapsed. Trowa's hands shot out and grabbed Quatre before he could disappear in the fog.  
  
"So they're looking for us," Duo said. "Any ideas, anyone?" he asked. Silence greeted him as Trowa pulled Quatre's body into the wagon. The fact that Quatre was already beginning to heal himself didn't relieve him in the least. Those creatures weren't natural, they were here to kill, and he could feel them getting closer, now that he knew what to look for.   
  
"Damn," Duo cursed. "All right, I have an idea. It's not much, and it's a long shot - I was hoping that one of you would have something better, but if we don't..." he turned to Trowa. "You cleared a path through the fog to the other wagon, think you can clear one to the forest? It should be about three-hundred feet in that direction, if we haven't moved."  
  
Trowa could feel the demons coming closer. "I think so, if we haven't moved," he felt obliged to point out. "Why the forest?"  
  
"It's protected. I can get us through those protections, I think, but the demons won't be able to. I think. It's the only thing I can think of."  
  
"They're getting closer," Wufei said urgently, staring off into the fog.   
  
"Do it," Heero instructed Duo, who turned to Trowa and clasped his shoulder. "It's your turn first."  
  
"Get ready to move," Trowa instructed Duo, who was still holding the reins. "I won't be able to hold it open very long."  
  
"Yes sir!" Duo said, apparently cheerful again, and gave him a salute before taking up the reins.   
  
Trowa concentrated in the direction that Duo had indicated that the forest was. Normally manipulating fog was like sweeping a gauzy curtain away. Trying to move this fog was like trying to move a lead-weighted blanket. Sweat began to form on his forehead as he poured all of his energy into the attempt, but the fog didn't move. Then he felt a hand reach for his own, and suddenly vast amounts of energy poured into his body. He stiffened involuntarily, and then looked down at Quatre, who was holding his hand as he sat on the floor of the wagon, glowing softly.  
  
:Hurry, Trowa, I can't keep this up forever!:  
  
Trowa turned back to the fog, and using the energy Quatre was giving him, forced a past through the fog. He could see the forest at the end of the tunnel he'd created. "Go!" he instructed through gritted teeth, feeling the unnatural fog fighting against him. There was a pounding in his head and he dropped to his knees, focusing all of his attention on keeping the tunnel up as Duo shouted at the horse and snapped the reins. It didn't take much effort to get the horse galloping towards the forest - the animal was already terrified, and Duo was shouting at the top of his lungs at the horse.  
  
Trowa allowed the fog to collapse back into the tunnel as they passed through it, but it got harder and harder to hold it up, even with the energy Quatre was giving him. Then, as they were only a few feet from the forest, the horse suddenly skidded to a halt. It stopped at the edge of a boundary, about eight feet from the forest, but within that boundary, there was no fog. Swearing ferociously, Duo jumped down from his seat and dragged the horse into the safe region, and Trowa breathed a sigh of relief as he let the tunnel collapse behind him.   
  
"Don't relax, we're not safe yet," Duo muttered. "Get out here!"  
  
As Trowa started to climb out of the wagon, he was highly aware of Quatre at his side, although it was impossible to tell who was supporting who. They hit the ground, then both froze as there was a scream behind them. Trowa spun and saw Catherine scrambling backwards to get out of the reach of the two demons who had climbed into the back of the wagon. The Ringmaster backed up in front of Catherine, shielding her, and Trowa tried to get up the energy to jump back in the wagon, but he was completely drained. His eyes widened in horror as the demons stepped forward - they were even uglier in real life, and there was something about them that screamed out to him that they were not of this world.  
  
There was a flash of white light, followed an instant later by a red flash. Trowa was temporarily blinded by the intense light. When his eyes cleared, Heero and Wufei were standing over the bodies of the two demons, but they were staring at each other with shocked expressions on their faces. At least, that's how it looked to Trowa, who knew a lot about people who don't show much expression. He knew that they were both shocked, even though Heero's expression looked the same as it always did, and Wufei looked angry, which was not unusual. But they were both definitely shocked.   
  
"Oh great, you killed the monsters. Are you going to sit here and congratulate yourselves for a while, or are you interested in escaping from the rest of them?" Duo asked sarcastically as he lifted Catherine out of the wagon without any difficulty at all. He was stronger than he looked. They climbed out of the wagon and followed Duo to the actual boundary of the woods. It wasn't natural, the trees were in a perfectly straight line, but there wasn't the feeling of 'wrongness' that he had felt from the fog.   
  
Duo put his hand out in the space between the trees, and there was a flash of light. He drew back a hand with an oath. "Yeah, it's still here. Cut the horse loose," he instructed. "We can't bring it with us, and unless you want to leave it for those things..."  
  
Heero grunted and quickly cut the horse loose. It disappeared into the forest, as Duo considered to stare at the space between the trees.  
  
"What is it?" Catherine asked.   
  
"It's a magical ward that the faeries put up around their forests to protect them from humans and other dangers," Duo remarked casually, still staring at the empty space. "They don't really come and steal children, you know. They really prefer to be left alone by humans."  
  
"Will you get to the point, already?" Wufei demanded, glancing uneasily at the fog.  
  
"Working on it," Duo muttered. "Ah, here it is!" He made several strange gestures with his right hand, thrust his left hand through the barrier, and said a number of strange, nonsense phrases that Trowa could not remember even as he heard them. Suddenly a glowing blue arch appeared in between the trees. "All right, go," Duo said, keeping one of his hands through the archway at all times.   
  
Catherine and the Ringmaster hesitated. "But that's the faery forest!" she protested.   
  
"You want to deal with faeries or demons?!" Duo demanded.  
  
Catherine looked like she was about to refuse, but there was a chilling howl from inside the wagon, and the wagon suddenly started to shudder as something inside moved. They all froze.   
  
"Ah, Heero?" Quatre said softly. "Are you guys sure you killed that thing?"  
  
"No," Heero replied through gritted teeth.  
  
Catherine ran through the portal, dragging the Ringmaster behind her. Trowa and Quatre followed them, then Heero, then Wufei, and finally Duo. The archway disappeared as soon as his hand left it, and they were standing in the forest. The demons came out of the wagon and slowly approached them. Duo stood still and stared at them through the invisible shield. "Nah nah, you can't get us!" he suddenly shouted. One of the demons tried to throw itself through the barrier. There was a burst of light and a howl of pain, then the smoking demon backed up to watch with his partner at the edge of the fog.  
  
"What are you doing?!" Wufei demanded. "Are you crazy?!"  
  
"Me? Nah, not too much. I knew there wasn't a chance that they could get through it," Duo said casually, nodding towards the edge of the forest. "Nothing gets through the faeries' borders."  
  
"They're from another dimension, how do you know that?" Wufei was quite angry, and not bothering to hide any of it.  
  
"Nothing gets through the border. Nothing. The borders stood up through the Mage Wars, they can certainly stand up to a bunch of so-called demons," Duo said, tossing his braid over a shoulder.   
  
"How do you know that?" Heero demanded in a low voice, but Duo held up his hands, gesturing for silence. If Duo wanted quiet, there was something very, very wrong. They fell silent.  
  
Duo was absolutely still now, his expression one of intense concentration as he stood with his head tilted to one side, listening to the still forest. After a few seconds his eyes flew open, and he cursed again, switching through several languages that Trowa didn't recognize. Finally he reverted to the local dialect. "I thought they didn't use those anymore!" he exclaimed, and then surprised them all by suddenly pulling the pendant off his neck. His body shimmered, then returned to it's normal form, pointed ears and all. "Take them off!" he hissed, a strange intensity in his voice. "By the Lady, take them off!"  
  
"Why?" Heero asked in a flat voice.   
  
"Just do it!" Duo ordered, and made a short gesture with his hand. Suddenly Trowa's pendant ripped itself through his shirt, it caught briefly about his neck, then the string snapped as it flew through the air towards Duo, who held up a casual hand as the five pendants floated in the air in front of him. "Sorry, but you guys have no idea what you're doing here. Make sure your ears are visible," he said, pocketing the stones.   
Trowa stared at him. For the first time he could remember, there was no laughter in Duo's eyes. Instead there was a darkness blacker than anything he'd ever seen, and a deep determination. What happened to him?  
  
  
  
[1] - This is what happens when I'm reading Macbeth at the same time as I'm writing stuff.   
I hope everyone's enjoying this. I'm having a good time writing it, at least. If you like it (or if you hate it) you can write me at Marika_89@hotmail.com.  
Comments and criticism welcome.  



	4. Part 3

"Any word?" Treize asked, showing impatience for once. It was a bad lapse, and he silently berated himself even as he waited for an answer.  
  
"No, sir. No word on the boys."  
  
Treize hid his anger and frustration the way he usually hid his impatience. Lady Une was one of his best people, brilliant, ruthless, and completely loyal, an unusual thing these days. She didn't deserve to bear the brunt of his frustration. He dismissed her, and looked around the room, wishing there was some sort of graceful and dignified way to throw a temper tantrum. There wasn't, so he settled back into his seat, looking over the new versions of the prophecy that had arrived this morning. That was suspicious, not this particular version, but that suddenly his scholars were finding so many different versions, all at once, when before it had been a struggle to find even one.  
  
He briefly considered the possibility that somehow these things had been held back and were being delivered to him, but dismissed it. A prophecy only told what was going to happen in the future, it couldn't change anything, except indirectly, if someone read them and then changed the present. As I intend to. But they couldn't change anything on their own.   
  
He made himself as comfortable as possible and started reading this new version. With each new prophecy he read, he gained another piece of information, and the pieces were beginning to come together. Now he had the identities of the five who were destined to save humanity, and if he didn't have them in his hands, it was only a matter of time until he did. He was also learning the names of some companions to the five: the Peaceful Girl, the Faithful Followers, and the Disinherited, whatever that meant. The one who would become the incarnation of the danger was referred to as the Seeker. His life would be so much simpler if the prophecies would just use people's names instead of these mystical and mysterious names.   
  
Oh, well, there was no help for it. He'd have to wait until either something was revealed, or he got another piece of information that would help him positively identify these, and others.   
  
There was another option, of course. When he finally had Quatre and the others in his hands, chances were these other people would come to him on their own, which would solve a great number of his problems.   
  
He continued to read, and didn't notice Lady Une quietly close the door, slipping away before someone could catch her eavesdropping.  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
Quatre stared at the suddenly changed Duo. Gone was the laughing, easy-going (although sometimes irritating) fellow who had been with them for almost a month. Now there was a hard-eyed man who gave orders and expected them to be followed. Then there was the whole matter of Duo ripping their pendants away from them. It wasn't so much the loss of his that bothered Quatre - Trowa's friends were trustworthy, and there was no one else to see them, but he'd never seen Duo use magic of any kind before, not even the little magics that normal mages could do. If not for the power that Quatre sensed in him and the physical differences that marked their kind, he could have been a normal human.   
  
"Get in a circle around the humans," Duo instructed in a low voice as he reached under his shirt and pulled out a small necklace with some sort of cross hanging from it. He carefully placed it on the outside of his clothes so that it was clearly visible. "We'll have to protect them. I don't think they'll attack us."  
  
"Who?" Quatre asked nervously as they moved into a circle around the two normal humans. And since when do you call them humans, not 'normal humans' or 'non-mages'?  
  
"The vestia," Duo said. "They're forest spirits who have been given a physical form and bound to protect the boundaries of the forest. Very few of the faeries use them anymore - the boundaries are enough to keep humans out. I only saw one once because we visited a distant forest that bordered a very dangerous region, and the faeries there kept a few vestia on that border to make sure nothing got through."  
  
"We?"  
  
"Never mind. Here they come. I don't think they'll attack us, but I know they'll attack the humans. That's why we have to stay between the vestia and the humans until I can convince them we won't harm the forest. Got it?"  
  
They nodded nervously, and Quatre could practically hear Heero promising himself he'd get the entire story out of Duo if he had to beat it out of him with his fists. If he could do it. Quatre knew as much about magic as almost anyone, and he never felt anything like what he'd felt today, first from Trowa, then from Heero and Wufei, and now from Duo, too. Something about their situation was changing them, and he wasn't sure it was for the best.  
  
Then he saw what had to be the vestia. They looked like ghosts, really, six or eight feet tall, white masses of faint light in a vaguely human shape, but he could partially see through them, and he shivered. Duo, although wary, walked directly up to one of them, holding his arms out to the sides. One of the... the beings swept up over him and all around him, then backed off, while the others moved in and swept around the group. Quatre felt a damp chill on his skin, but nothing more.   
  
The ghosts moved back towards Duo, and a strange howling sound emerged from their forms. He shook his head firmly, opened his mouth... and a strange trilling noise, like birdsong, emerged from his lips. The ghosts hesitated, then howled again. Once again Duo opened that mouth and let that odd bird-song come out. The ghosts howled, and this time Duo crossed his arms and shot them a sharp look, and they actually fell silent, and backed up several feet. Duo sighed and turned around. "You guys might as well sit down and get some rest. I've managed to convince them not to kill us or the humans now, but they're not letting us go anywhere until some of their masters arrived. They should be here in under an hour."  
  
"You managed to convince them..." Wufei managed to say in a half-choked voice.   
  
"Yeah. They hesitated 'cause of our ears and magic. Otherwise they would have killed us without a second thought. But they're definitely not happy about the humans being here. Luckily, they can sense the demons out there, and it's confusing them, so they are waiting for instructions." He glanced out past the barrier into the fog, where they could now see a half-dozen demons waiting for them. He shrugged to himself and sank down onto the ground and settled back against a tree, closing his eyes.  
  
"Wait!" Quatre called, hopelessly confused. "Who are their masters, and what language were you speaking?"  
  
"The faeries, of course," Duo replied in a completely unconcerned voice, eyes still closed. "And I was speaking the only language they'd understand."  
  
"What language?"  
  
Duo shrugged. "It doesn't have a name. Sit down and calm down, Quatre. You can't do anything right now, and we may have to do a lot of walking tonight."  
  
"Why?" Quatre asked, trying to calm himself.  
  
"Well, we took shelter in the faeries' woods from a danger, and I don't know what this is going to mean for them. It's good manners to thank a person and give your apologies when you bring trouble right up to their doorstep. When the faeries come, we'll have to go with them and convey our thanks to their elders."   
  
"Elders?" The only things that Quatre knew about faeries were the few stories he'd been told as a young child. As soon as he realized what he was, he stopped showing any interest in those stories, not wanting to draw attention to the similarities between himself and the mystical creatures, and he hadn't heard anything about them in years. So he knew virtually nothing about them except that he was supposed to look like them and they were trick-players and troublemakers. "How do you know so much about the faeries?" That question covered a myriad of others, like how he'd known how to get through the barrier, where his confidence was coming from now, how he'd known about the ghost-creatures, how he knew that language, and how he knew all about the faeries.  
  
"I lived with them for a few years," Duo said with another casual shrug.  
  
Quatre gasped and saw shock on the others faces. "That's impossible!"  
  
"Why? Because the faeries only kidnap kids to use them in their spells, or to frighten parents?" Duo snorted. "Those stupid tales aren't true, any more than it's true that we're some kind of strange animal that needs to be kept locked up for the protection of the people. They took care of me when humans, who were supposed to be my own kind, turned me out!" for a second his voice dripped with anger, then, just as suddenly, he was his usual self. "So they let me live with them for a couple years. They taught me the secrets of their forests, some of their magic, and I helped them learn more about humans." He shrugged. "This wasn't my forest, but I visited it once before, I think, so the faeries had to adapt their border defenses to let me in. Most of the forests won't let a human of any kind in, even if I know the spell." He shrugged. "It's a good thing that I guessed right, and this was a forest I visited before."   
  
"You guessed?!" Catherine shrieked, and fainted as the stress finally got to her.  
  
Duo's eyes snapped open as Quatre just barely managed to catch Catherine and ease her to the ground. He held out a hand, checking to see if she'd injured herself. She seemed fine - it must have just been the shock. He found himself not particularily surprised that Duo had risked their lives on a chance like that. He had said that it was a risky plan. Maybe next time he says it's a risky plan I'll kill myself then and spare myself the misery, he thought ironically.   
  
"That was a rather large risk," Trowa, the master of understatement, observed.  
  
Duo shrugged. "It was that or the demons. I don't think even I can kill one of those."  
  
Quatre's eyebrows shot up as the bitterness in Duo's voice hit him, as did his choice of words. Even I? That implies he's especially good at killing? But why... why would that make him hate himself? The depth of Duo's self-hatred hit him like a blow, and he gasped, pressing a hand against his chest, and unconsciously drew closer to Trowa.   
  
"Who did you kill?" he whispered, not really expecting Duo to answer him.  
  
"Everyone," Duo said with a shrug that belied the furious anger Quatre knew he felt. "So you might want to watch out for me. I'm a killer. The fucking king was right about one thing, at least." Another wave of self-hatred that caused Quatre to drop to his knees. Duo stared at him. "Q-man, are you all right?"  
  
Quatre shook his head slightly, ashamed by the lack of control that had allowed him to peer into Duo's mind and see something that was profoundly personal, but at the same time wanting to know why Duo felt that way, and help him. "It's nothing," he said unconvincingly.   
  
Duo obviously didn't believe him, but he suddenly sat straight up. "Here they come..."  
  
Quatre's head snapped up as several... they looked a little like children, each only about three feet tall, but they had bluish skin, and very, very sharply pointed ears, translucent wings rising from their shoulders, and... there was an overwhelming sense of belonging about them. They fit in perfectly with their surroundings, and were somehow linked with each other. He blinked. He was used to getting strange feelings about certain things, but rarely did those feelings give him quite as much information as he was getting right now.   
  
Duo opened his mouth and that odd bird-song emerged again. The faeries chattered back at him, then looked at the group, then chattered again. Suddenly one of them vanished in a puff of smoke, and reappeared next to Quatre. It reached out and touched Quatre, first his ears, then his hair, and finally the little creature lay a hand on his heart. He looked at Duo and sang some more.   
  
"Say hi, Quatre, he just introduced himself. His name is," Duo frowned. "The closest human languages have is a very detailed definition of a specific type of leaf on a specific type of tree. He says you can call him Leaf, though."  
  
"Leaf? Is that really his name?"  
  
"Of course not. His real name is unpronounceable by human tongues, and even then, that isn't his secret name. He'd never tell you his real name, no more than I would," Duo snorted at the very thought. "And, by the way, he likes your hair. None of them have blond hair. Green, blue, brown and white, but not yellow. He says it looks like the sun. That's a high compliment, in their language."  
  
"Thank you, Leaf," Quatre said formally.   
  
"They're leaving," Trowa murmured as the ghosts turned and disappeared into the forest.   
  
"Yeah, Bright Stream told them that we're not invaders. But we have to go see the elders," Duo said, standing. He held out a hand, and then boosted one of the faeries onto his shoulder. He grinned at Quatre, all of his earlier dark emotions either gone or buried deep enough that Quatre couldn't feel them. "They like me because I'm taller than any of them, and I give good rides, to the younglings, anyway. That doesn't happen too often among humans, either. Let's go."  
  
Quatre got to his feet. Trowa lifted Catherine up, then looked at him. Quatre understood, held a hand over Catherine's head, and with a little mental shove woke her up. "What happened?" she asked weakly as Trowa set her on her feet, ready to catch her if she fell again.   
  
"You fainted," the Ringmaster told her, his face creased with concern. It was the first thing he'd said since they entered the forest. "Are you all right?"  
  
"I think so." Catherine's eyes got very wide as she saw the faery who was now clinging to Quatre's hand. "Is that..."  
  
"This is Leaf," Quatre said firmly, with a smile at the faery, who seemed frightened by Catherine.   
  
"That's a faery?" Catherine asked, leaning forward to look at Leaf, who cowered behind Quatre. "He's cute!"  
  
"I wouldn't get to close," Duo warned as he started walking off into the woods. Quatre did a double take - where had all the faeries come from? Suddenly Duo was surrounded by en entire crowd of them. "They don't like normal humans much. You people have been hunting them for as long as they've existed, and you're scaring the crap out of him. Just be quiet and try not to draw attention to yourselves. Its bad manners to scare your hosts."  
  
"Since when do you care about manners?" Wufei demanded, obviously thinking of Duo's rather... ah... unique eating habits, which more often then not did not include the use of utensils and quite often did include speaking with his mouth full, as he was not patient enough to wait for the food to leave his mouth before expressing his opinion on one matter or another.  
  
"What? You mean human manners? That's fun, this is serious," Duo said. "You just don't act rudely to a faery elder. That's the way it is."  
  
This? From Duo? Quatre liked Duo as much as any of them (except Trowa) - it was impossible not to like him, but he wasn't entirely sure it was Duo he was talking to right now.   
  
"Come on," Duo said, walking away.  
  
"Did he really mean it?" Catherine whispered. "About them not liking humans? And about meeting the elders? Who are the elders?"  
  
Trowa, ever eloquent, shrugged as they started following Duo deeper into the forest.  
  
---------------------------------------------------  
  
Duo wasn't sure if this was some sort of dream come true, or a nightmare come to life to haunt him. It was great being back, the only time in his entire life that he could ever remember being happy was when he was with the faeries, just like the ones who were crowded around his waist and the one riding on his shoulder. They were all youngsters, a few of whom remembered him as he'd been back then and who were very excited to see him again. But then, they wouldn't know the truth about him. The elders weren't so innocent. They were like polar opposites, the youngsters and the elders, the youngsters were eternally innocent and carefree until they joined the ranks of the elders, at which point they gained a wisdom as ancient as the world itself. None of this ridiculous fiddling around in the middle time that most humans spent their entire lives in. Things were very clear-cut here, and it felt good to be in the only home he'd ever known.  
  
But it was also like reliving the nightmares that tormented him most nights. Being around the faeries made him feel like he was actually living in one of the dreams, and he kept waiting for the cries of alarm as the borders, which had stood up against the ancient Mage Wars, shimmered and collapsed. Someone had mistakenly invited the destroyers in, he knew that was how they'd managed to destroy the borders, from the inside, but who the invaders were or how they managed to trick one of the elders into inviting them in, that was still a mystery. He'd been away from the glen when the border was broken, and had felt the magic wall collapse. They always were trying to get him to stay close, but his years as a street rat had made him detest any sort of confinement, so he could usually be found two or three nights a week creeping around the borders of the forest to prevent the feeling of being trapped from taking over him.   
  
The shattering shields hit him like a physical blow, and he must have blacked out for a few minutes. When he woke up, he could feel the trees shrieking their alarm, and raced back to the glen as fast as his legs could carry him. He was too late to do anything - by the time he arrived... there was nothing left. The glen itself had been burned, everything burned, and there were bodies everywhere. No stranger to death even before that, he'd stayed long enough to identify the bodies of the elders, and his closest friends among the younglings. I won't cry, he promised himself. The faeries couldn't cry - that was why they'd taken him in in the first place. They'd found him crying as he fled through the fields near the forest, trying to hide from what he'd done to his best friend. The younglings had never seen tears before, and brought him back to the elders to ask what was wrong with him, and the elders had let him stay. But tears always upset the younglings, once they knew what the strange water meant, so he didn't cry anymore, not even when remembering hurt so bad that he wanted to die.  
  
After a few minutes he left the ruined glen. He spent a few more days in the forest, searching for any survivors. He stayed long after he knew that there was no one left, that they were all dead, hoping vainly that one or two had been frightened and stayed in hiding all this time. But there was no one left, and without the borders, this forest was as dangerous as any other wild place. Already the trees warned him that dangerous animals were starting to move in. So he went back to the human world, which he had abandoned two years earlier. He was nine.  
  
I kill everyone that cares for me. The thought rose to the front of his mind, unbidden.   
  
He pushed the thought aside and concentrated on the rapid-fire questions the younglings were asking him, about himself, his friends, and the scary humans they'd brought with them. Duo chuckled. He still couldn't get over the fact that the faeries thought that Heero and Wufei were less frightening than Catherine and the Ringmaster. It was hilarious. The faeries certainly liked Trowa and Quatre, though. Well, anyone would like Quatre, but why they were so attracted to Trowa was a mystery to him.   
  
He could still feel Heero's glare burning two holes in the back of his head, and Wufei wasn't exactly happy, either. Oh well, he thought cheerfully, it was worth almost anything to see the surprise on their faces when I started talking to the vestia. I think Heero even opened his mouth a little, too. Oh, yes, that moment had been worth a lot, and it was great being back in one of the protected forests, where the tree-spirits talked freely and the weather was never bad, but nothing was worth another slaughter like the one he'd witnessed six years ago.   
  
In a very short time, they reached the glen, which was surprising. Glens were rarely less than two hours walk from the edge of the forest. He suspected that some of the elders had spelled them closer - they were apparently anxious to see him. The eager younglings led him up to a slightly raised platform in front of the elders' tree. Eight elders were sitting in a semi-circle on the platform. Duo set down Kelish' el' fenre ka and bowed with deep respect to the elders. :Bow,: he instructed the others, getting a great deal of enjoyment over the expression on Wufei's face at having to take orders from him before his companion composed himself and bowed solemnly to the elders, who outwardly looked almost the same as the younglings. It was very difficult to see the differences, unless you lived with them for a long time. For Duo, it was obvious.  
  
"Much time has passed since any clan has heard from you, sisters' human-son," one of the elders commented. At first, Duo had visited with the sister clans of 'his' clan, but although none of them blamed him for his clan's death, he couldn't shake the fear that he'd end up killing more of his 'family', so eventually he left the faeries' forest for good. "It has been... two years?"  
  
"Four, actually, honored elder of my former mother's sisters," Duo replied in their own language, not offended that they didn't know. Time passed differently for them here. An immortal creature didn't need to pay as much attention to time as a mortal one did. Similarly, the mode of address was very important to the faeries. When the elder had called him 'sisters' human-son', they were acknowledging that he had been the adopted son of the sister clan. It was, in effect, like bringing him into the family. He couldn't afford that - the last clan to welcome him was extinct now. "I have been living among humans for many years now, and can no longer be considered one of the little people."  
  
"Not so little anymore, either," a second elder observed. Duo wasn't sure whether that was a compliment or not, but at least he'd managed to separate himself from their 'family'.   
  
"Why have you brought humans into our forest?" demanded one of the ones sitting on the end. Despite the hostile tone of his voice, Duo wasn't too upset. The ones on the end were always supposed to take opposing and extreme views of any case. The elders accusation had nothing to do with the group or his personal opinion. "And so many. How could you bring six humans into our forest?"  
  
Now there was something that had to be corrected. "Two," he replied promptly.  
  
"Six," the elder repeated.  
  
"Two. Two humans, and four like me," Duo replied firmly.  
  
"Six humans," the elder repeated stubbornly, and Duo allowed a hint of a frown to appear on his face. He could be just as stubborn as them, and he wanted them to know it.  
  
"Two."  
  
"Duo, what are you doing?" Quatre murmured. "We can't understand it, you know, but you sound like a merchant haggling over a price."  
  
"I'm haggling over how many humans I brought into their forest."  
  
Quatre looked confused, and Ran' vir' kel ar, the one that Quatre was calling Leaf, patted his hand comfortingly. The thought of any of them trying to pronounce 'Leaf' or 'Bright Stream's' real names was fairly funny, too.   
  
"Six. You are also human."  
  
"I said I'd been living among humans," he corrected. "Two."  
  
"There is a difference? Six."  
  
"Yes. Humans do not like my kind. Just now we five are escaping from a human who wanted to lock us up. Two."  
  
The elder frowned. The faeries didn't have stupid prejudices, so he was in no position to understand human ones. Finally he gave up. "Two," he agreed, then asked, "Why would they do such a thing?"  
  
Duo shrugged. "Humans are strange."  
  
Remembering his role, the elder put on a stern face and asked, "Why have you brought humans into our forest?"  
  
"We were being pursued by evil creatures, who wanted to destroy us though we committed no crime. I thought that we might be able to hide behind the border shields, knowing that the little people would never truly harm innocents, as humans believe you would, knowing that you would, in fact, protect them." If nothing else worked, flattery was always a good idea.  
  
The elder scowled at him, trying to figure out what was wrong with that statement.   
  
"Of course we will protect you and your friends!" said the elder on the end, who was supposed to be his advocate. In fact, Duo was sort of surprised that she hadn't spoken up earlier. "How long must you stay?"  
  
"Only until the sun sets twice," Duo assured her. "Then the evil creatures will be sent back to where they came from, and we will leave. No one will ever tell your secrets, either."  
  
"How can you guarantee that?" demanded the other elder, back in his role of devil's advocate.  
  
"I am a mage, as are some of my companions. We can ensure that the humans will never speak about what they have seen here."  
  
"Holy Lady! It's THEM!" the first elder to speak suddenly exclaimed, pointing straight at Duo. Then his wavering finger moved to point at the other four. The elder made a gesture and the half-circle disappeared entirely.  
  
:What's happening?: Heero growled in his mind.   
  
:I don't know, I've never seen anything like this!:   
  
:I thought you knew these creatures,: Wufei accused.  
  
Duo's temper flared. :These creatures, as you call them, are completely as intelligent as any human, and a damn sight more compassionate, too! When my kind,: sarcasm dripped form his voice, :was letting people like me die like animals, when they kicked me out of villages and treated me like some sort of disease in society, just because I didn't have a family, these creatures took me in! Tell me one human family who would have done the same!:  
  
:Mine,: Quatre said softly. :We try, but we can't get to everyone, and we're not allowed to help people beyond our borders.:  
  
:I didn't mean you, Quatre,: Duo said. :I'm sure there are good humans out there somewhere, but I haven't met any. When humans turned me out, the faeries took me in. So don't go about thinking that they're what most humans think they are. They're different, but not evil. Like us.: Silence followed his words. Except I really am what they fear, he added to himself.  
  
Suddenly the eight elders reappeared. "You may stay," said the one who had spoken first.  
  
Duo blinked. It wasn't supposed to be this easy. He had expected that they would eventually be allowed to stay for the few days they needed, he couldn't have imagined the faeries not letting them, but it should have been a long and drawn-out argument. This sudden capitulation made him nervous. "Thank you, honored elders," he said with a bow. "If it doesn't bother you, may I ask why you agreed so easily?"  
  
They stared at him as if he'd sprouted another head. "You mean you don't know?" one of them asked incredulously.   
  
He shook his head. "Know what?"  
  
---------------------------------------------------  
  
Duo and the suddenly-there faeries were talking again, then Duo shook his head and said something in response to the faeries. The faeries exchanged a glance, and then there was a brilliant flash of light. Heero shielded his eyes, and when he put his arm down, he was standing on some sort of endless flat gray plain. The other four were also standing there, as were the eight faeries. "What did you do? Where are we?" he growled, readying himself to attack.  
  
"Calm yourself, young Master," one of the faeries said. "Your physical bodies are fine, but it was necessary to bring your spirit selves to this place so that we could speak with you. We do not speak your tongue with any fluency."  
  
"Young Master?" Duo asked, and his voice trembled slightly. "Why did you call him that?" he asked in an accusing voice.  
  
"What's wrong?" Quatre asked.  
  
"They don't call anyone Master, it's part of their life, one of their few laws," Duo told him, still staring at Heero. "They haven't called anyone Master since the Mage Wars. Then their Masters were the great magicians of that time who created many magical beings, like the faeries, in the midst of their wars. I don't think the word 'master' has passed the lips of a faery in almost a thousand years."  
  
"Exactly a thousand years, young Master," another faery said to Duo, who blanched and turned white.   
  
"It's been one thousand years since the world was nearly destroyed by human magics. Human magics and demon masters," yet another faery added, and Heero added to his list of annoyances that Duo had brought about the fact that he couldn't tell any of the faeries apart.   
  
"What?"  
  
"Humans lost much of their knowledge in those times," a faery said, shaking his head. "They know nothing of what happened back there."  
  
"Then tell us," Duo said coldly. "We don't know. Tell us what happened, and why you keep calling us 'Master.' Kir' ur' te chavel told me that you would never call another that."  
  
"It is your destiny, young Master. All of your destinies. The battles that mortals now call the mage wars were fought between men, yes, but what few know is that those mortals were merely the agents of greater powers, fighting for domination of this world."  
  
"Not merely," another corrected. "But they didn't fight for themselves. Back then there were many powerful mages, who toyed with their magics and used them against each other, or to create beings like ourselves. But the most powerful among them were there for a greater purpose. On one side were those fighting for the inhabitants of this planet were five who embodied various powers of this world. And there were a few, we never knew the true number, who, through their ambition or arrogance, were tricked, or forced, into serving the invaders. A power from the same realm as the evil that chases you now wishes to move from that realm into this one. I do not think anyone would wish to live in this world if they got control."  
  
"So what happened?" Duo demanded. "If they were so powerful, shouldn't there be some sort of resolution? I'm assuming our guys won, because we're here having this conversation."  
  
"The invaders were being beaten back, although the battles were tearing this world apart. Evidence of the damage still exists to the north of here."  
  
"The wastelands?" Duo asked, air whistling through his teeth as he grimaced and sucked in a deep breath. "Fuck. All right, what happened?"  
  
"They were being beaten back, but before they could be trapped and permanently barred from this world, they escaped, jumping back to their own world. There was nothing our people could do - we can't live on their world, so they couldn't follow, and there's no way to attack from this world. So they did the only thing they could think of - they erected a magical barrier around this world to keep the invaders out for a thousand years, to give humanity a chance to recover from the devastation so you could fight again when the invaders came back."  
  
"That's why there are no great mages anymore!" Quatre suddenly exclaimed. "All of this world's magic is going into keeping the barrier up, so there wasn't any excess that... seeped into people."  
  
"There were no great mages," the elder corrected him. "Your very existence tells us that the barrier is coming down. It has been one thousand years, and the invaders will be able to return. I suspect in another dozen years, you will see quite a few 'great mages', as you call them, as the magic returns to the inhabitants of the world. If the world still exists then."  
  
His words were not reassuring. "What does this have to do with us?" Trowa asked quietly.  
  
"Is it not obvious? You have been born to embody the power of this world, so that you may protect it."  
  
"What sort of power?"  
  
"If you don't know, then I may not tell you. I may have said too much already. Too much foreknowledge voids the prophecies."  
  
"Prophecies!" Duo exclaimed in disgust. "His fuck-head the king was talking about them too! What is this?"  
  
"Prophecies are very important, but they must be filled out exactly to be valid. There are things you must do at certain times or in certain places, or all is lost."  
  
"We're being driven to the north," Quatre offered hesitantly. "Can you tell us anything about that? Are we headed for the wastelands?"  
  
"I can't tell you that, but you will know when you've reached your destination. And why we will help you now. You must be allowed to continue your journey safely. We shall pass word on to the other clans, so that they will know you and provide aid if you ever need it."  
  
"Is there anything you can tell us about the demons that chased us today that might give us a chance to fight them off?" Quatre asked calmly. He seemed to be taking this all in stride. At least it didn't seem to be affecting his ability to think. Duo seemed stunned. At least, that's what Heero was assuming it was, because the braided idiot was actually quiet for once. As for Heero himself, he was very, very angry at the entire situation, but he shunted that aside. Anger at the faeries, or anyone else, wouldn't do him any good. He started to carefully go over everything they faeries had said, assimilating the data. If the wastelands were the location of the last battle, it was entirely possible that that was where they were heading.  
  
"You cannot kill them, but if you sever the link between the bodies they inhabit here and their spirits, they will not be able to remain on this world. The ancient Masters were able to do this, but I do not know how. If you cannot do that, run, there is nothing else that will stop them. It is possible," he glanced at one of his companions. "That we will be able to construct some talismans that will keep them from being able to track you. We will attempt that immediately, so that we will be able to give them to you when you leave. Your departure must not be delayed."  
  
"In the meantime, you have our hospitality," the female faery said. "And if I may make a suggestion, you may want to exchange a bit of information about yourselves. Secrecy may have protected you in the past, but trust is what will get you through this journey. You are stronger together than you are apart, and knowing each other's strengths and weaknesses would be wise." She gave them a sharp look, then clapped her hands, and abruptly they were standing back in the middle of the faeries' home.  
  
One of the elders started speaking in that odd language again, and Duo bowed, nodded, and pointed to one of the trees that surrounded the edge of the glade. "They say there's a huge room in there we can use to sleep for the next two nights. The demons should be gone after that. We can rejoin the circus at the other end of the forest. We won't even have lost any time."  
  
-------------------------------------------  
  
That night, long after Catherine and the Ringmaster were safely asleep, the five of them sat up, awake. "We should talk. Exchange stories at least," Duo finally muttered. "I don't have the faintest clue what any of you can do, besides Quatre. I've seen some pretty weird magic living with the faeries, but none of it was anything like what I saw today, when you fought through the fog, Trowa, or the two of you struck down those demons," his glance included Wufei and Heero, who glared at him. "Maybe... it might be important. I'd hate for someone to get hurt because we were trying to hide from each other." Unspoken was the comment that he had revealed quite a bit about himself in order to protect them. Wufei understood the point, but did not wish to be the first to speak.   
  
"My father was Lord Winner, Earl of the Desert," Quatre said quietly. "I have twenty-nine older sisters, born to my father by many of his wives. My mother was his favorite, but she died giving birth to me. I was the heir to the Winner estates, until I was found out. I've known I was... different for a long time. Even before I understood what I was, I knew to hide it. I wore my hair long over my ears, and I slumped my shoulders to hide how long and thin I was. When I was nine, I found out what I was when I was in court and heard Treize's announcement that all 'faeries' were to be incarcerated. I was angry, I was frightened, but I didn't think there was anything I could do about it. So I kept hiding. I managed to keep it a secret for over six years, not even my sisters knew, and in that time I also discovered that I was not a normal mage. I never got tired when I risked using my magic, and I could do every spell that I read about in the books I was able to sneak out of the library. I got caught one day when I was out in the marketplace with my father. There was a runaway horse, and this little orphan girl..." he sighed and blinked away tears. "I healed her. She would have died otherwise. I knew the Hunters were right there - they were actually walking in the market with my father, talking about something Treize was doing, but I couldn't let her die. I couldn't let them know that I was different, either, so I pretended to collapse after I healed her. The Hunters immediately took hold of me, locked that collar around my neck..." his hand went to his throat. "... They thought I was asleep, but I heard everything they said about me, said to my father about me, and I felt it when they tied me up and threw me in the cage. After that... well, you all know what happened. I stayed with you. I should have tried to do something earlier to stop what Treize was doing, but I was scared. I'm sorry." He looked around the group nervously, as if expecting some sort of angry judgment from one of them.   
  
Trowa reached out and actually embraced Quatre while he was awake. "I don't use my power very often, I never have, but I always knew it was there," Trowa said softly. He didn't let go of Quatre, and Quatre leaned against his chest, a faint smile on his face. "I... I have no real name. I started using the name Trowa Barton when I became a bounty hunter. I was raised by a band of mercenaries as their slave, but I learned from them. I escaped when I was eleven. I became a bounty hunter for a year after that, but I didn't like it very much. I joined the circus when I was twelve, because I knew how to throw knives. I was there for three years before the Hunters tracked me down." He shrugged.  
  
"And what is your power?" Duo asked, eyes bright.  
  
"I can manipulate the forces of nature, weather, earth, water... they obey me. The fog... was unnatural. And I can change form."  
  
"What?" Quatre sat up straight and looked at Trowa. "What forms?"  
  
"Anything that's alive and exists in nature. Animals are easier than plants, though."  
  
"Can I see?"  
  
Wufei didn't miss the fact that Quatre had asked Trowa to show 'him', not 'them'. Their attraction was blatantly obvious to everyone except the two of them.   
  
Trowa nodded once, then stood up. Suddenly his body seemed to melt downwards in a sickening process that made Wufei vaguely nauseous to watch. He averted his eyes briefly, and when he looked back, there was a huge, tawny-maned lion standing in front of him, just like the ones Trowa was always petting back in the circus wagon.   
  
Quatre's eyes were as large as saucers. "Trowa, is that you?"  
  
:It's me,: Trowa assured them mentally. :I can't talk properly with other bodies.: He did that strange melting thing, but upward this time, and a few seconds later he stood there, looking perfectly normal. He sat down again, but did not reach for Quatre, who looked slightly disappointed.  
  
"Trowa, did you change the weather that night before we met your circus?" Wufei asked suspiciously. Trowa nodded, looking vaguely embarrassed, and Quatre smiled slightly.  
  
"Your turn, Heero," Duo said in a teasing voice.  
  
Heero glared at him, but he did speak. "My name is Heero Yuy. That is not my real name, I do not know my real name. It is a name given to my by the man who raised me. Odin Lowe was a lone mercenary and assassin. He never told me where he found me. He trained me to work with him, and to complete my missions with utmost efficiency, without letting my emotions get in the way. He was killed in a mission five years ago, but I completed the mission before I left." He gave out another broad round of glares as if promising doom on anyone who even suggested that he wouldn't complete a mission.  
  
"I do not know the source of my power. I can heal without exhaustion, like Quatre, and I can throw balls of pure energy to kill. The first talent was considered inappropriate for an assassin, so Odin... discouraged it. Strongly. The second might be appropriate, but it was too flashy, so I only used it in practice." He distributed one more glare and fell silent.   
  
Wufei realized that both Trowa and Heero had exceeded their conversation limits for the next three weeks, and would probably remain silent all that time because of it. That meant that the only one talking would be Duo... he shuddered.  
  
As if his thoughts had brought doom upon himself, Duo turned to him. "All right, Wu-man! What's your story?"  
  
Wufei barely restrained a snarl of anger. "My name is not Wu-man. My name is Chang Wufei. I am the last surviving member of the Dragon Clan."  
  
"Hey, wait a second. Chang Wufei? You mean we've been calling you by your last name all this time?" Duo asked. "That's cold. You didn't even tell us your name."  
  
"Duo, Wufei is his first name," Quatre murmured. "Change is his family name. They say their family names first in his land."  
  
Maybe they're not all ignorant barbarians... Wufei turned a surprised eye to Quatre, who smiled faintly. "Someone as close to the throne as I was had to be able to deal with ambassadors from all sorts of places. I spent hours every week learning customs from other lands, even ones as distant as your own, Chang Wufei."  
  
Hearing his name pronounced correctly hurt more than he wanted to think about, so Wufei nodded sharply and continued speaking. "I was a scholar for most of my life, and I did not know of my power. When I was ten, I was married to a girl from another clan to cement ties between us. She was a warrior, and although we did not care for each other, there was... respect." He swallowed. He hadn't spoken to anyone of what happened since the actual event. "At our wedding, a dozen of the demons arrived. Warriors from both of our clans tried to fight them off, but they cannot be harmed by normal means. One of Meiran's uncles was a priest and a prophet, and managed to cast a spell that bought us a few seconds. He ordered my wife and I to flee. At the time I was quite angry, and Meiran was angrier, but we obeyed. The demons broke through his shields a few seconds after we started to run, and he was cut down. Meiran turned to fight the demon to avenge her uncle, and was killed." He was astonished at how careless his own voice sounded as he described the death of his wife. "I thought I was going to die, but as they approached me, flames burst from my body. The demons recoiled, and I ran. I managed to stay ahead of them for two days, because every time they got close, the flames returned and I was able to escape." He swallowed as he remembered those two horrible days of constant flight, when he was unable to sleep or even rest as he fled those who had destroyed two clans. "When they were gone, I pledged myself to the sword to avenge their deaths. I trained, and learned to control my power as well. I found out that somehow the demons had come from this land, so I came across the sea to find out why they had come, who had sent them, and to kill them. I had barely arrived when I was captured by the Hunters." He snorted in disgust at his own weakness.   
  
"Wait a second. If you didn't know what most mages could do, how did you know to conceal your power?" Duo asked.  
  
"I did not know."  
  
"Then you used your power in front of them?!"  
  
"No. I would not use magic on those who had none themselves. It is dishonorable and weak."  
  
Duo stared at him as if he'd started to speak some incomprehensible language. "Dishonorable. Right. Whatever."  
  
Wufei glared at him, wishing he was as good at it as Heero.  
  
"So your power is fire?" Quatre said timidly.  
  
Wufei sighed and conjured a ball of fire. "And I see magic. I see it everywhere," he added in a weary voice. When that particular talent had emerged, it had taken him weeks to get used to seeing flowing streams of light all around him, all the time. There was magic all over the world, and it nearly blinded him at first. Now he could ignore it, but it was an irritation.  
  
"Oh." Quatre sounded unenlightened, but Wufei decided he had talked enough for today.   
  
"Duo?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.   
  
"What?"  
  
"Your turn."  
  
"You already know my story."  
  
"We know you lived with the faeries at one point, and that you were a thief at another," Heero growled. "The whole story. Now."  
  
Something dark flickered in Duo's eyes before he looked away. "Fine. I'm a street rat, born and raised. Never had any family." He shrugged. "So what. When I was little, I was part of this gang. There was this older kid, Solo, he protected all of the little kids, and he taught me how to survive on the streets. I was with him until I turned seven. That was... nine years ago, right? That year there was a disease that ran through the slums that year. The wealthy had enough money to buy a cure. We didn't. Solo and the others got sick. I didn't. Since I was the only one healthy enough to move, I went into one of the rich people's homes, and stole their medicine. I took it back with me, tried to give it to Solo, but he insisted I give it to the other kids first. I did, and I gave what was left over to him, but I guess there wasn't enough." There was a dead quality in his voice now, and a dead look in his eyes. "The others started getting better, but Solo didn't. He was dying, and he was in so much pain. I knew I could heal, a little. I tried to help him - I just wanted his pain to end. And I ended it. I killed him, sucked the life right out of him.  
  
"Some of the so-good humans," his voice dripped with bitterness now. "Some of them had followed me back from when I stole the medicine. And they walked in on us like that, a bunch of sick little *human* kids, halfway between life and death, one dead kid, Solo, and little old me, the faery-child, sitting over his body with my ears in plain view. Who do you think they blamed, not only for Solo's death, but for the others and for the entire plague? It wasn't the son of the rich man I robbed. They ran me out of the town that night. I ran so fast, even though..." he cut himself off. "I ran fast enough that they couldn't catch me to stone me. That's when the faeries found me. They took me back into their forest and gave me a home and a family. They taught me their language, and some of their magic. They were good people. I killed them too."  
  
"What?" Quatre gasped.  
  
"I didn't see what happened. I was off in the woods. The border shields shattered, and I was linked to them. I collapsed, and when I woke up, the trees were screaming warnings. I ran back to the glen, but it was too late. They were all dead. Something killed them all. I searched for days for someone, anyone, but no one survived. So I left the faery forest, went back to the humans. Called myself Duo Maxwell, Duo for Solo, and Maxwell, because that's pretty close to the faery word for 'human.' I've been on the streets by myself since then, till I got caught by those damn Hunters. But I took a bunch of them out with me, first," he added with satisfaction.   
  
"The faeries weren't your fault, Duo," Quatre said quietly.   
  
"Oh, but they were. I don't think you understand. Everyone who gets close to me dies," Duo said with a grin that had more than a tinge of madness in it. "Cause that's my power. I'm Death."  
  
  
  



	5. Part 4

Treize stared out across the plains that were currently covered in a vast, rolling fog, and fought the urge to be sick. Kings weren't supposed to be upset by something as simple as odd weather, even if he did know that this was very, very odd weather, and completely unnatural. He could feel it pressing against his mind, even here in the towers of his castle, which was as far from it as it was possible to get.  
  
The fog hadn't entered either the city or his castle yet, but he had no doubts that was because the fog wasn't supposed to come in, not because it couldn't. It was... it was somehow searching for something, and it knew that its quarry wasn't here, so they were left alone. But it's very existence grated on his nerves, because he could feel the constant pressure in his mind, shouting how unnatural it was to the entire world, if they could only hear it. Even normal humans were beginning to feel it, after almost two days of the stuff.   
Then, as he gazed at the rolling fog, the pressure on his mind suddenly disappeared, and he gasped, almost stumbling. After two days of it, the cessation of the pushing was almost a physical sensation. The fog began to thin, and within twenty minutes it was completely gone. Treize felt a hint of panic begin to grip him. Either it found them or it gave up. It has to be the latter - they wouldn't fall so easily. After all these centuries, they couldn't.  
  
"Sire!" shouted a messenger. "We've had word of strange occurrences in the forests! Right before the mist disappeared!" a messenger came running up the steps to the tower.  
  
"Strange occurrences? What do you mean?"  
  
"Well, sir... it seems... well, there are reports of..." suddenly the messenger was hesitant to give him information.  
  
"Well... what is it?"  
  
"Faeries, sir."  
  
"The escaped prisoners?"  
  
"No sir. They aren't... they're smaller..."  
  
Treize suddenly realized what was bothering the man. "You can say it. It's all right. They're real faeries, aren't they?"  
  
"Yes sir," the man said, looking relieved.  
  
"What are they doing?"  
  
"Just watching, for the most part, sir, but we've sent a couple of people up to the edge of the forests, and they can see lights inside. Like spell-casting, sir."  
  
"Why would the faeries be spell-casting?" Treize asked, more himself than anyone else, but the messenger heard him.   
  
"I don't know sir, but they're exhibiting this activity from one end of the kingdom to the other, and presumably outside the kingdom, as well. It all started at almost exactly the same time."  
  
"So they're communicating, somehow, and something has set them off," Treize mused to himself, thinking over the little he knew about the actual faeries, not the human mages he'd captured before. There was no mention of them in the prophecies, but the prophecies couldn't tell him everything. As far as he knew, the faeries hadn't acted all together or in such an obvious manner in hundreds of years. It must be obvious if they were leaking enough energy for normal humans to see.   
  
Treize was not a big believer in coincidences, and even if he had been, that they would start acting so strangely just when the prophecies started coming into effect was an awfully big coincidence. He cast one last glance down at the walls of his city, and at the plains beyond them, which were now clear of fog. He smiled indulgently as people streamed out of the city gates and into the fields, imagining that he could hear their joyous cries of relief, after being trapped in the city for two days with that evil stuff lurking outside.   
  
They think it's over, but it's only just begun. He shook his head slightly and headed down to his library to see what he had on true faeries.  
  
----------------------------------------  
  
Two nights later they left the faeries' home, or glen, as Duo called it. The faeries had repaired the chains of their necklaces that Duo had broken when he ripped them off their necks, and had added a second pendant to each of their necklaces, a perfectly round circular black stone. Quatre had examined them, and said that he could feel very powerful magic in them, but didn't know what it was. Duo, of course, had said that it was because that was faery magic, not human. The faeries had never quite gotten used to the presence of the humans, and were a little too eager in sending them off.   
  
Some of the younglings accompanied them a few miles out of the glen, but left them long before they reached the edge of the woods. It didn't matter - Duo swore up and down on some god he called 'the Lady' that he knew the way out of the forest, and back to the road. With any luck they'd catch up with the circus caravan where the new detour met up with the old overgrown road. They probably wouldn't even have lost much time, because of the way that they could travel in the forest.   
  
Trowa wasn't sure what he thought about all of this. He'd seen a lot of strange things in his life, but few of them matched what he'd seen on this short trip already. The power within him was growing - he could feel it - but what that meant he wasn't ready to ask yet.   
  
After an hour or two of walking, they came to a river. It wasn't particularly wide, but it was fairly deep and running quite quickly. Without a word Trowa waded in and swam across, keeping a sharp eye on Catherine, who he knew was less than a great swimmer. She'd been holding up rather well, considering the circumstances, although he caught her staring at his ears from time to time, a frightened look on her face, and he'd seen the sigh of relief she gave when they put the pendants back on.   
  
He was so focused on Catherine that he didn't realize until he got to the other side that Quatre wasn't with them. As they stood, dripping, on the bank, he was still standing on the far side, staring at the water with a helpless expression.  
  
"Hey, Quatre! Come on over!" Duo shouted. It wasn't really necessary, the river wasn't that big. "The road's less than a mile from here!"  
  
"I can't!" Quatre shouted back.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"I can't swim!"  
  
Duo snorted, grinning broadly. "How can that be? With all the traveling you've done, all the training... someone must have taught you how to swim!"  
  
"I grew up in a desert!" Quatre snapped, sounding as if he was going to lose his temper for the first time since Trowa had met him. "I never learned how to swim, because there wasn't any water! Besides," he added sheepishly. "I'm afraid of the water."  
  
Duo started chuckling under his breath, but he didn't make any more sarcastic comments as Quatre went back to staring mournfully at the water.   
  
Without really thinking, Trowa reached for his power and directed it downward, into the ground. A sheet of rock shot out from his side of the bank, right below his feet, and stretched straight across the stream, plunging back into the earth right in front of Quatre's feet. "Come on over," he called, while Quatre stared at the bridge he'd just made, eyes wide as saucers.   
  
Quatre stared at him, swallowed, and then took a hesitant step out onto the bridge, testing its strength with his full weight. When it didn't collapse, he took another step, then another, and then ran the rest of the way across the bridge, his face very pale. He heaved a great sigh of relief when he reached the other side.   
  
"Ah, Trowa?" Duo said hesitantly.   
  
Trowa looked at him.  
  
"The faeries don't like to leave any, um, manmade constructions in their forests, nothing that would make it easier for humans to get across. Could you..." he made a gesture with his hand towards the flat stone bridge. Trowa nodded and called on his power once again, and the bridge dissolved away to sand in front of their eyes, leaving no evidence behind of the bridge he'd just made.  
  
"Yeah, thanks," Duo said, staring at the empty space above the river. "Hey! Why didn't you do that before we all jumped in and got wet?!" he asked.  
  
Trowa shrugged. He didn't really like showing his power in front of other people, even if he thought he could trust them. But Quatre really had been scared, he could feel it, and it had been the easiest way available at the time.  
  
"Trowa!" Catherine gasped. "You did that?"  
  
Trowa shrugged and nodded slightly. The Ringmaster smiled. "You always did have a way with the animals. If you ever want to talk about it, I'd love to hear." There was no hint of curiosity in his voice, he wasn't attempting to get Trowa to tell him anything, it was just a straightforward offer. Trowa nodded again. He doubted he'd ever want to talk about it, and if he did, it would be with Quatre, but the offer was kind nonetheless. Catherine stared at him, then shivered and started off down the faint path.   
  
The others started off as well, but Quatre caught his arm and held him back, until they stood by themselves by the river. "Thank you," Quatre said softly.  
  
Trowa snuck a glance at the smaller boy, and to his astonishment saw that Quatre was staring at him with something like longing in his eyes. Their eyes met for a fraction of a second, then they both froze, staring at each other. Finally Trowa turned his eyes away. "You're welcome." He turned and would have headed after the others, but Quatre's hand suddenly snuck into his own, and he froze, looking down at their clasped hands. Then he looked up and at Quatre's worried face. His lips quirked slightly, and he squeezed Quatre's hand gently.   
  
Quatre's face lit up like the sun, and he squeezed back. Then they headed off after the others.  
  
-------------------------------------------  
  
A few weeks later, as they were approaching the border to the Sank kingdom, Wufei started as he saw the patterns of magic in the world being disrupted again. He froze in his seat as the wave of energy washed over the caravan, tensing as it touched his skin, and felt the tingle from the black circular stone the faeries had given them, as it somehow masked their presence from the spell that searched for them. He still was examining the strange magic in those stones - faery magic was unlike anything he'd ever seen, and he'd seen a lot.   
  
Quatre, magic rolling off him in waves like a miniature sun, suddenly appeared walking at the side of the wagon, his face worried. "Did you feel that?" he asked quietly. "That was the third time today. They're increasing."  
  
Wufei didn't feel the need to respond to such an obvious statement. The first spell searching for them had come at the end of the first week after they left the faery woods. Then there'd been nothing for several days, then another. Eventually they started coming every day, and then multiple times a day. Three was the most he'd felt in any one day.   
  
Quatre watched him anxiously for a while, but when it became clear that he wasn't going to speak, let himself fall back several feet, out of easy talking range. Wufei continued his ruminations in silence, only vaguely noticing when they stopped while the Ringmaster spoke with the border guards to make sure they were allowed into the Sank kingdom.   
  
:We'd better get into the back of one of the wagons,: Trowa said into his mind, and Wufei could tell by the 'tone' that the comment was addressed to them in general. Grumbling to himself about intrusive foreigners who couldn't keep their thoughts to themselves, Wufei turned around and slid off his seat and into the back of the wagon, where he wasn't visible from the outside. A few seconds later Quatre climbed in from the back and sat down opposite Wufei, leaning against the side of the wagon. He was, mercifully, silent. It was almost unbearably hot in the wagon.  
  
A few seconds after that Duo came flying into the wagon. He was actually holding his braid in one hand, and he cradled it protectively against his chest. He looked frantically around the wagon, spied Quatre, and scuttled across the floor to crouch behind the blond boy. "Protect me!" he cried, and Wufei sensed that his fear was greatly exaggerated, but not entirely fake.   
  
"Duo, what did you do?" Quatre asked in a suffering tone of voice. "Is it Heero again..." he trailed off as Heero threw aside the flap at the back of the weapon, his cobalt eyes attempting to burn holes through Duo through force of will alone. The problem with that was that, with one of them, it actually might work.   
  
Then Heero climbed out of the glare of the sun, and Wufei's jaw dropped open. Heero moved slowly towards Duo with all the stealth of a trained warrior, his hands clenched into fists at his side. But what caused all the surprise was Heero's hair. Heero's bright green hair.   
  
If Duo had tried such a thing as that with his hair, Wufei would have gladly roasted him alive. Well, maybe not roasted, but he would have burned off that braid of his without a second thought. But what was very disconcerting was the little sparks of energy that were gathering around Heero's clenched fists and falling to the floor. "Duo," Quatre said in a strained voice. "What did you do to his hair?"  
  
"It's nothing! Just a faery trick! See?" Duo flicked his hand, and a wave of blackness shot out from him and washed over Heero, whose hair returned to a normal color. "See? No harm done. Just a little joke. Harmless... right Heero?"   
  
Heero growled something intelligible at him, but Wufei noticed with some relief that the sparks had stopped falling from his fists. Then something in Heero's face changed slightly, and he suddenly leaped at Duo, knocking over Quatre in the process and grabbing Duo's braid in one fist. He bent over it for several seconds as Duo struggled to free himself, keeping up a steady stream of curses, pleading, and half-hearted threats. Then there was a flash of white magic energy that poured out of Heero's hand for a minute, then he released Duo's braid with a slight smile on his face.   
  
Duo's hair was a bright pink that couldn't possible exist in nature. It almost glowed. Duo let out a startled squawk of dismay. "My hair!" he shouted. "What have you done to my hair!"  
  
"Turnabout's fair play," Quatre remarked mildly, sitting up. Only now did Wufei notice that Quatre had had his hand raised the entire time, ready to strike down either one of them if the quarrelling got out of hand. They'd all been teaching each other after they left the faery forest, and if none of them (with the possible exception of Quatre) were comfortable with it, they were all learning a lot.   
  
"Quatre?" Trowa asked, suddenly appearing at the front of the wagon. He climbed in beside the blond boy as Catherine climbed up into the driver's seat of the wagon.   
  
"I'm fine," Quatre told him before they could say anything else, and Wufei averted his eyes as Trowa sat on the wagon floor next to Quatre, putting one arm around the smaller boy. They'd become more open about their obvious affection in the last few weeks, which didn't bother Wufei, as long as they stayed away from him. He frowned slightly as Quatre let out a little sigh of contentment, snuggling up against Trowa, who smiled slightly, his only concession to his feelings. Well, at least they weren't as loud as Heero and Duo. Well, as loud as Duo, anyway. Heero was guilty only by association, and because his continued silence seemed to push Duo to further and further lengths to break it. Hence the current hair episode.   
  
Wufei closed his eyes and automatically blocked out the sounds of Heero and Duo bickering - again, it was really Duo talking and Heero sitting there with a smug expression on his face as Duo discovered he couldn't override the spell. Once they were filtered out of his consciousness, he turned back to a problem that had been plaguing him for days - one that the recent episode had reminded him of. With all the other magic users he'd ever seen, the color of their magic depended on the spell they used. Not so with himself or his companions.   
  
No matter what sort of magic they did, their magic remained a single color, at least to his eyes. Different colors for all of them, too. His own magic was always red, Trowa's was green, Quatre's was yellow, Heero's was brilliant white, and Duo's was always that black. The blackness disturbed him for no reason that he could think of, except that in others, black magic was always associated with death. Which made sense - Duo derived his power from death, through no fault of his own, so Wufei shouldn't hold it against him, right?   
  
Maybe it was that Duo seemed so calm about it, so accepting about the horrible nature of his power, and he seemed so jovial about the whole situation. He really did sometimes seem to be the mythical God of Death from Wufei's homeland. Wufei bowed his head in respect for those who had died and silently commended their spirits to Shinigami. But he was just another man, right?  
  
Wufei was forced to conclude that none of them were 'just another man', even him. He could not be the pure warrior he wished to be, not while he had the taint of magic on him. Warriors didn't suddenly lash out with fireballs flying from his fingertips when they were disarmed by an honorable opponent. He'd managed to change his target, so the fireballs slammed into the ground in front of the man instead of into his chest, but he'd been so startled that he'd abandoned the fight entirely, not even giving Wufei the option of an honorable death. He hadn't had a formal battle since then, and wouldn't, couldn't, until he could be sure that he wouldn't resort to dishonorable magic if his life was threatened.   
  
The wagon had started rolling again, and they all stayed very quiet as they passed the border guard. The chances were slight that he would recognize them as the escaped 'faeries' - after seeing the real thing he would never be able to refer to them as 'faeries' without a smirk - but given their luck so far, none of them were willing to take that chance. "Good morning," Catherine said pleasantly, and someone responded.   
  
Suddenly Wufei stiffened as the entire wagon was filled with a powerful magical presence that looked like a diffuse fog to his eyes, but was probably invisible to anyone else, and something like bells sounded in his mind. Then it was gone. He blinked and looked around the room, and found that everyone else was doing the same thing.  
  
:Did anyone else hear the bells?: Quatre asked in a silent whisper, mindful of the border guard still outside.  
  
:Yeah. I've never felt or heard anything like THAT before,: Duo said.  
  
:What do you think it means?: Quatre asked.   
  
:We're on the right track,: Trowa said with quiet confidence. :We're doing what we're supposed to, whatever that means.:  
  
They all fell silent again, examining their memories of the event. Wufei was thinking about something else, however. Every now and then, each of them would suddenly speak up with some bit of knowledge about what they were doing or what was coming that they had no way of knowing. They were absolutely certain of their knowledge, a fact which was mocked by the others until they too, got the mysterious knowledge in their minds. Quatre had been the first, with the knowledge that the caravan was there for them, but since then they'd all experienced it. It was extremely irritating, the feeling that they were being herded along like a bunch of sheep.   
  
There was no help for it - at least not now. But if he had the chance, he'd get rid of his magic without a second thought. It had been a burden for many years now, and useless in his quest to avenge his clan, his wife... he automatically pushed away the emotions that threatened to overwhelm him at the thought of the deaths that had sent him on this crazy journey in the first place. Duo was not the only one with a legacy of death. With those dark thoughts to keep him company, Wufei sat silently as they traveled into the Sank kingdom.  
  
But a part of his mind couldn't help but wonder if he really would be better off without his magic...  
  
---------------------------------------  
  
Trowa peered cautiously around a corner, then went back to watching the others. They'd helped raise the tents this morning, then Catherine had shooed them away, encouraging them to take a look around the capital city of the Sank kingdom. Since they were going to be here for several days, there really was nothing for them to do. Strangely enough, he felt no compulsion to continue moving, as they had for the last few months, ever since they escaped. We're supposed to do something here.   
  
But he'd had an uneasy feeling ever since they left the circus, a feeling he couldn't shake despite the fact that none of the others felt anything. Right now Duo was demonstrating his pocket-picking skills on Heero while the dark-haired boy glared at him and Wufei lectured quite loudly about how dishonorable theft was. Sometimes Trowa found Wufei's ideas about honor almost laughable. It was quite obvious that, like Quatre, Wufei had never missed a meal in his life before he was captured by Treize. It was easy to condemn all thieves when you had enough to eat and not starve or freeze to death. Trowa knew that Duo had stolen before, both for himself and for others. It wasn't always dishonorable. The things he'd done in his past were far less honorable than steeling a loaf of bread.   
  
"Is something wrong?" Quatre asked, coming over. His hand twitched, as though he might reach for Trowa's hand, but he finally left it at his side. Trowa was both relieved and disappointed - relieved because they didn't want to draw attention to themselves at all and because he wasn't quite ready to show that sort of emotion in public, and disappointed because he liked holding Quatre's hand.   
  
"Nothing," he murmured, glancing around warily once again. He still couldn't get used to seeing Quatre and the others with human features, especially now. Something had happened to his eyes in the last few days, and he was seeing *through* the illusions that Quatre had built from time to time, which had him concerned at first that something was wrong with the spells, but experimentation had shown him that it was just him. The spells themselves were solid, it was something he was doing to see through them.  
  
"At least Heero finally turned Duo's hair back to normal," Quatre said with a slight smile, and something in his voice caused Trowa to turn and stare at him.  
  
"You knew how to change his hair back," Trowa stated after a moment's thought.   
  
"I figured it out after the first day," Quatre said with a little shrug. "Heero made a little gesture as he was doing the spell. We didn't notice it at the time, but in order to undo the spell you have to do the same gesture again." He shrugged self-deprecatingly. "It wasn't that hard, but it kept Duo busy, didn't it?"  
  
Duo's hair had remained bright pink for almost a week, right up until they had entered the capital city of Sank. No amount of pleading or spell casting on Duo's part had returned his hair to normal, and Heero went around with that smug smile on his face for several days, finally relenting when Wufei acidly pointed out how noticeable the hair was, and that they really didn't want to attract attention.   
  
"You knew and you didn't tell Duo?"  
  
Quatre's smile broadened slightly. "And ruin their fun?"  
  
Trowa shook his head slightly, amazed and amused by his love's antics. The others seemed to be of the opinion that there was nothing there but the polite exterior he always wore, although that was merely the most visible part. Other things, like this strange sense of humor, were popping up more and more frequently in his presence as Quatre relaxed from his formal pose.  
  
"I'd really like to look around the shops," Quatre said with an engaging smile. Manipulative little beast, he knew exactly how cute he was, and how it affected people of either sex, and used it to his advantage. "I was never allowed anywhere without an escort of guards when I was the heir, I've never been able to just walk around by myself." He turned aquamarine eyes on Trowa, and for a second he looked through the illusion again and saw the huge eyes that Quatre normally had, not the little ones he wore when he looked human.   
  
He smiled and nodded agreement. Quatre's face lit up and he darted around the corner. There was a loud exclamation and a thud, and when Trowa looked, he saw Quatre sitting on the ground in front of two very startled-looking soldiers. Two soldiers in Oz uniforms. Trowa swallowed involuntarily, firmly telling himself that there was no way that they could recognize them, that the illusions were holding firm. "Watch where you're going, kid," one of the soldiers said with a smile that belayed the gruffness of his voice, and he extended a hand to Quatre, pulling him to his feet. There was no sign that he'd recognized the fugitives.   
  
"Oh, I'm terribly sorry!" Quatre exclaimed. "My apologies! I wasn't watching where I was going and..." he trailed off as the soldier who'd pulled him to his feet suddenly stared at him.  
  
"Master Quatre?" he asked, horror tingeing his voice. "But I'd heard that you'd been captured by Treize..." he suddenly cut himself off, his eyes immediately traveling to his companion.  
  
"The Quatre that we're looking for?" the man asked, beady eyes bright. He grabbed Quatre's arm. "You're not going anywhere, faery," he growled, greed evident in his eyes.   
  
"Hey! Let him go!" Duo shouted, and Trowa resisted the urge to groan. There went any chance that they'd think that he was alone here, giving them a chance to break him out later.   
  
"There's the rest of them!" the second soldier shouted.  
  
"Come on! They're just a bunch of kids," the first soldier pleaded. "He just looks a little bit like Quatre. Look at his ears! He's not the one we're looking for!"  
  
"You should know better than anyone that these creatures," he gave Quatre a harsh shake. "Can disguise themselves using magic. For Lord Treize!" he shouted, louder this time. "The prisoners are here!"  
  
Quatre suddenly brought one hand up directly into the soldier's face, but just before his hand touched, there was a bright flash of light. The man cried out in fear and pain, covering his eyes, and in doing so, he let go of Quatre, who hastily backed away. Almost instantly the first soldier tackled the second. "Run Master Quatre!" he shouted, wrestling his companion to the ground. "There are others coming!"  
  
They didn't hesitate - they all took off running, not to the circus, but in the opposite direction. Quatre shouted, "Thank you!" over his shoulder as they ran, but even he didn't pause in the slightest as Duo led them through the twisting streets.   
  
"Shit!" Duo exclaimed as they ran into another group of Oz soldiers, eight of them this time, running through the streets with swords drawn, obviously looking for them. And, of course, Duo's exclamation brought the soldier's attention right to them. Duo spun and headed off down another street, keeping up a steady stream of curses on the sub verbal level. Trowa caught sight of one of the soldiers holding another damned searching crystal like the ones he and Quatre had stolen and smashed - where had he gotten more?  
  
Over the next half hour, due mostly to Duo's intimate knowledge of the streets, they managed to stay ahead of the full regiment of guards that were following them, and had even managed to loose them temporarily, but they had a problem. :They've got us boxed in,: Duo told them silently, so odd conversations or whispering wouldn't draw attention. :I've seen them do it before. They've sealed off this part of the city, and they've got us surrounded. It's only a matter of time until they catch up with us.:  
  
:What can we do?: Quatre asked, his mental voice showing none of the hard breathing he was currently doing.   
  
:I don't know. I've gotten out of this sort of situation a couple of times by staying ahead of them and out of sight until they gave up because it wasn't worth the effort.:  
  
:I don't think that's going to work,: Wufei remarked sarcastically.  
  
:Me neither. Give me a second. One time I got away by going across the rooftops, but that was in a little town, I don't think that'll work here. I'm about to run out of ideas, guys, anyone else?:  
  
There was a silence, long enough to tell Trowa that they were out of ideas, too. His fist tightened around one of his knives. He was not going to be treated like an animal ever again. He wasn't afraid of showing his powers here, his true powers. The soldiers would never know what hit them. He saw from the looks on their faces that the others were feeling the same way.   
  
:What say we kill some Ozzies?: Duo suggested with a mean grin on his face.  
  
:Wait a second!: Quatre exclaimed. :What day is today?:  
  
:It's the eighth day of the fifth month,: Trowa told him.  
  
:No, the day! Of the week!:  
  
:It's restday, of course,: Duo said with the attitude of someone who couldn't believe he was being asked a question like that.  
  
:Great! Come on, I've got an idea!: Quatre practically shouted, and then took off again, running... well, straight for something.   
  
:Where are we going?: Duo asked as they picked up another group of Oz soldiers on their tail.  
  
:The Queen always holds a general session open to the public to handle disputes on restdays,: Quatre replied, turning the corner.  
  
:Wait a second! You want us to go to another ruler?! She's just going to lock us up like Treize did!:  
  
:No, she's different, and besides...: Quatre trailed off, because the soldiers were getting closer. Suddenly he skidded to a stop in front of a large gate and pounded on it. "Sanctuary!" he shouted. "We claim sanctuary in the name of the Queen!"  
  
The gate's guards exchanged a startled look, then saw the Oz soldiers running up behind them, and hastily opened the gate. The five boys slipped through and into a large courtyard, and the gate was slammed in the face of the Oz soldiers.   
  
"Let us in! We are on official business in the name of King Treize!" one of the soldiers demanded. "Those men belong to King Treize!"  
  
The two guards exchanged a curious look, then one of them hesitantly turned to Quatre. "We don't want a diplomatic incident..." one of them started, but trailed off when Quatre turned those blue eyes on him.  
  
"You gave us sanctuary," he said firmly. "We wish a hearing before the Queen and will accept her decision in the matter."  
  
The guards exchanged another glance, not looking at all happy with the matter.   
  
"The law..." Quatre prompted, getting a slightly irritated look on his face. He drew himself up to his full height, which wasn't particularly impressive, but somehow he managed to look more than a little imposing. "The law says that we must be granted a hearing once sanctuary has been claimed."  
  
The guards exchanged one more glance, then one of them turned to the soldiers fuming on the other side of gate. "These people have claimed sanctuary..."  
  
"They aren't people!" one of the guards exploded. "They're a bunch of fucking faeries!"  
  
The guard looked back at Quatre, who raised his eyebrows. The guard sighed, looked at the sky as if asking the gods why they were doing this to him, and then turned back to the soldiers. "You'll have to choose a few among you to represent your cause before the Queen. If she rules in your favor, you'll have our aide in apprehending them and transporting them back to Oz."  
  
"This is ridiculous!" exploded the same guard.  
  
"And if I were you, I wouldn't pick him. The Queen has a short temper when it comes to manners," the guard warned, while Trowa hid a smile. They definitely had the advantage there. Quatre could probably be polite to a grisly bear that was attacking him. And he did seem to know what he was doing.   
  
As the soldiers conferred among themselves, Duo asked, :So how we going to escape from these bozos before they take us to the Queen?:  
  
:We're not,: Quatre replied.  
  
:What?!:  
  
:I think the Queen will protect us.:  
  
:Do you have a reason to think that, or are you just winging it?: Duo demanded nervously.  
  
:I met her once when I was a child. She has a reason to defy Treize...: he cut himself off as the guards admitted five of the soldiers through the gate. The one who had exploded twice was not one of them, although he growled at Quatre through the gates, and Trowa moved closer to Quatre, placing a protective hand on his shoulder.  
  
"This way, sirs," one of the guards said, taking a firm hold of Quatre's arm and leading him across the courtyard. Trowa wondered why he didn't protest, until he saw that one of the soldiers was receiving identical treatment from the other guard, as two more guards moved to take their places. The hand-on-the-arm thing must be some sort of tradition.   
  
Quatre smiled reassuringly at Trowa as they walked across the courtyard and into a large room with a high, vaulted ceiling. There were a crowd of people at this end of the room, but at the end Trowa could see a large open area with a throne in front of it. A woman with blond hair sat on the throne, listening with every appearance of interest to the two people in the center of the open area. What was surprising was how young she was - she couldn't be any older than Quatre himself. As they got into a line at the instructions of the guard who still held onto Quatre's arm, Duo asked, :How long ago, exactly, did you meet her?:  
  
:I believe I was four.:  
  
:How old was she?!:  
  
:Four, of course. She's our age.:  
  
:You're risking our lives in the hands of some girl you haven't seen in over ten years?!: Duo sounded faintly hysterical.  
  
:I told you, she has reason to defy Treize, her brother... Oh, I almost forgot! Take off your pendants. I want her to see what we are.:  
  
:Are you crazy?:  
  
:We trusted you in the faery forest,: Quatre pointed out. :I know what I'm doing, I think.:  
  
:Very reassuring,: Duo growled, but he removed his pendant with the others. There were a number of gasps around them as people saw their appearances change, and the guard who was holding onto Quatre's arm looked absolutely miserable as his fingers tightened around Quatre's arm and he tried to back away at the same time. Quatre smiled faintly at him.   
  
:See that guy over there?: he asked, gesturing with a slight nod of his head to an opulently dressed man sitting in a chair at the edge of the cleared area, looking bored. Two Oz soldiers stood at attention behind him.  
  
:Yes.:  
  
:Watch him when we go out there. That's Oz's ambassador. His reaction ought to be funny.:  
  
Trowa was glad that Quatre found the situation amusing, but he wished that the blond was taking it a little more seriously.   
  
The Queen said something to the two people in the clearing, and they got up and walked away. The guard holding Quatre's arm suddenly moved forward, pulling Quatre into the open area, and the others followed. The other guard pulled the Oz soldiers into the open area, but they were careful to keep the two groups separate. "Your majesty," one of them said, and they both bowed. "These five..." he indicated the mages, "request sanctuary from you. The soldiers of Oz claim that they belong to King Treize of Oz. Both parties have agreed to put the matter in your hands." The guards bowed again and stood at attention between the two parties.   
  
One of the guards made a rude sound and muttered something about not having a choice in the matter, and Trowa sensed that Duo was about to respond, but before he could, Quatre said, :Don't say anything, Duo. Just let me talk and behave.: He said it more fiercely then Trowa could remember him being before, and Duo actually subsided.   
  
"What is this?!" demanded an angry voice, and Trowa's attention was brought back to the Oz ambassador, who had suddenly noticed who and what they are. "These creatures belong to Oz! I demand that you turn them over to my lord's men at once!"  
  
The Queen gazed at him coldly. "They have claimed sanctuary from me, and they will be heard. I do not appreciate having my authority questioned in my own court."  
  
The ambassador realized that he had probably gone too far, and bowed awkwardly. "My apologies, your majesty. I was merely... surprised. I have the utmost confidence that you will come to a fair and just ruling, and turn them over to Lord Treize."  
  
"Indeed," the queen remarked.  
  
Quatre apparently decided this was the appropriate moment to speak, and took a single step forward. "Your majesty," he began, and then bowed smoothly, putting the ambassador's effort at grace to shame. :Bow!: his thought lashed out at them, and they all bowed, not as nicely as Quatre, but they all managed some level of grace. "Please. We ask for sanctuary in your land from an unjust persecution by King Treize of his own people." That was the first time Trowa could ever remember hearing Quatre refer to their captor by his title.  
  
The ambassador sputtered. "They are criminals, your majesty!" he exclaimed. "Filthy criminals who escaped imprisonment and fled to your country to cause more trouble!"  
  
"I was under the impression that Treize doesn't even consider us human," Quatre said quietly, without taking his eyes off the queen. "How can we be criminals? I've committed no crime that I know of." Trowa noticed that he carefully avoided saying that none of them had ever committed a crime. Quatre was, in fact, probably the only one of them who'd never committed a crime previous to his imprisonment, but none of their crimes had warranted the treatment they'd received.  
  
"I must admit that I am surprised to see the heir to the Winner family being hunted down as a common criminal," the queen said in curious tones.  
  
Quatre smiled briefly, although Trowa saw the pain in his eyes before he bowed again, just as smoothly as the first time. Trowa wondered idly if Quatre was capable of an ungraceful move when he was on stage, as he obviously was now. "Unfortunately, due to the laws of Oz, mages like myself are not considered citizens, so I have been disinherited. I am no longer the Winner heir."  
  
The Queen didn't comment, merely looked back that the ambassador, who was becoming more and more flustered as Quatre spoke in that ultra-refined voice, still smiling pleasantly as if he were discussing the weather and not fighting for their freedom. For the first time Trowa could see why Quatre wasn't entirely disappointed at not being heir anymore - it was his father's rejection and refusal to fight Treize that hurt him, not loosing the power.   
  
"They are not citizens, it is true, they are dangerous animals, but they were being held in custody by Treize," the ambassador said with a wily glint in his eyes as he recovered some of his composure. "They broke out of the prison and killed several guards on their way. Both are serious crimes. They must be brought back to Oz to face justice."  
  
:That lying son of a bitch!: Duo exclaimed, furious.  
  
:People lie. Deal with it,: Heero told him.  
  
"I'm afraid that I don't remember fighting any guards as we escaped from the compound where we were wrongfully imprisoned," Quatre said easily, ignoring the mental argument that he had to be able to hear.   
  
"Wrongfully imprisoned?" the Queen asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"We were imprisoned because we're mages," Quatre clarified, still not looking at the ambassador.  
  
"The internal affairs of Oz are not of concern to the Sank kingdom," the ambassador said stiffly, but he seemed upset about something.  
  
:Got him!: Quatre exulted in his mind.  
  
"That is where you are incorrect, ambassador," the Queen said coldly, rising. She was even smaller than he'd thought. "I wish to make it known publicly that the Sank kingdom takes exception to King Treize's current policy of imprisoning innocent mages who have the misfortune to stumble into his kingdom. I also wish to make it clear that I, personally, dislike the man responsible for cheating my brother out of his inheritance, and while the Sank kingdom might have humored Oz by not putting a mage on the throne, that in no way means that we feel the same way about mages. Quatre, you and your friends may stay in Sank for as long as you wish, under my protection. Any attempt by Oz soldiers to take you out of the kingdom will be viewed as an act of aggression against the throne."  
  
"Thank you, your majesty," Quatre said, bowing, as the ambassador withdrew to his seat, looking very angry.  
  
"This way, please," said an elderly man in some sort of uniform, and they followed him out of the main chamber and into some sort of large waiting room, elegantly furnished. "Quatre, it's good to see you again," the elderly man said with a smile. He squeezed Quatre's shoulder. "Although I wish it could be under better circumstances."  
  
"It's good to see you too, Pagan," Quatre said with another smile. "And I owe a lot to Relena... excuse me, Queen Relena. We can't thank you enough for your aid."  
  
"Don't mention it, and Relena would be horrified to think that one of her few friends was calling her by her title. I know she's been looking for an excuse to publicly denounce Treize for what he did to master Milliardo for months now. You just gave her the perfect excuse." Pagan smiled. "She'll be out in a few minutes. She wants to talk to you."  
  
"Yes, I'd guessed that," Quatre said with a smile, then silently he said, :This is Pagan - he's worked for the Peacecraft family for his entire life. He's very wise, even if he hides it well, so be careful what you say around him, if you have any secrets.: Quatre paused, then said to Trowa alone. :That was rather foolish of me, wasn't it? We all have secrets, now.:  
  
:It's all right.:  
  
Then a second door opened and the Queen came walking in, a broad smile on her face. "Quatre! It's good to see you again!" she exclaimed, sounding very much like a little girl for a few seconds as she embraced a very startled-looking Quatre. "I'm so sorry to hear about your father," she murmured.   
  
"It's all right, Relena," he said, carefully putting her at arm's-length. "I... was sorry to hear about your brother. Do you know where he is now?"  
  
Suddenly her expression became guarded. "No, he left right after turning over the throne to me."  
  
:Her brother was heir, like me, and he's also a mage, like us. But he didn't hide it, because they don't look at us the same way as in Oz. But Sank is a small kingdom and Oz is almost an empire, and Treize pressured Sank until they had to give the throne to someone else. So Milliardo turned over the throne to his younger sister and disappeared so that Treize couldn't cause any more trouble,: Quatre explained.  
  
"I'm sorry," Quatre repeated.  
  
"I... you look... I never knew," she said, staring at his ears.   
  
"I know. I was living in Oz, I had to hide it," he explained. "No one knew."  
  
She nodded, her gaze traveling around the room. "Who are your friends?"  
  
"They were imprisoned with me - we escaped together," Quatre said truthfully, leaving out almost everything else. "This is Duo, Heero, Trowa, and Wufei," he introduced them, leaving out last names and any explanations.   
  
Based on her performance in the throne room, Trowa had assumed that she was a very strong-willed, remarkable young woman. He was now forced to rethink his opinion - maybe strong when it came to state matters, but still very much a child in other things. Her eyes glazed over and a dreamy smile appeared on her face as she looked at Heero, whose eyes widened in alarm and he actually backed up a step. Trowa couldn't hide a smile at the sight of the utterly unflappable Heero put on the defensive by a teenage girl.   
  
Then again, an assassin would face danger all the time, but almost never girls. Same thing could be said for me. I don't know what I would do if a girl started looking at me that way. Probably ignore her. That was the way he dealt with most things that made him uncomfortable. But that led to another uncomfortable thought - why was it that he loved Quatre? He'd seen enough of the world to know that though those pairing were not uncommon, they were not normal, either. He thought he loved the blond boy, but everything inside of him had been dead for so long, he couldn't be certain.  
  
Pagan finally ended the awkward silence that Relena's staring was making, but his topic of conversation was hardly better.   
  
"We've heard some horrible stories about what was happening to the mages within Oz's boarders," Pagan said. "Perhaps you can tell us. It must not have been as bad as it sounded."  
  
"I'm afraid it was worse. We were imprisoned, treated like animals..." Quatre shook his head as Relena finally regained her composure.   
  
"That's horrible! But I'm not sure this is much better. You'll practically be prisoners here as well. I can protect you as long as you're in the palace, but once you leave... the ambassador will already have bought enough plain street clothes to outfit all his men, and if they're not wearing their uniforms, I can't stop them."  
  
"Why are there so many Oz soldiers here?"  
  
"One of Treize's advisors is in the city, supposedly to investigate possible trade options, but she's a spy," Relena dismissed the story with a wave of her hand.   
  
"Who?"  
  
"Her name is Lady Une."  
  
Trowa stiffened involuntarily, and Quatre gasped.   
  
"You know her?"  
  
"She's Treize's top assistant," Quatre said, abandoning the formal names again. "What is she doing here?"  
  
Relena frowned slightly. "Pagan, didn't you say something about her spending a lot of time in my library?"  
  
"Yes, Lady. She's spent quite a bit of time there, searching through some of our oldest documents."  
  
Relena's eyes opened a little wider, and suddenly she was the Queen again, not a foolish mooning girl. "The documents that Zechs..." she trailed off, but Pagan nodded in response to whatever she was saying. She shot a sharp look at Quatre. "There is more here then you're telling me."  
  
Quatre smiled pleasantly, the same smile that he'd used in the throne room, the fake one. "That's entirely possible, your majesty."   
  
"You gave your word to the guards that you'd accept my judgment today. What would you have done if I'd decided against you?"  
  
"Run away, most likely."  
  
"You'd never be able to escape."  
  
"We have certain advantages," Quatre said, holding up a glowing hand.   
  
"The Quatre Winner I knew as a child would never go back on his word."  
  
"I am not Quatre Winner. I am Quatre, escaped faery-slave. I do what is necessary to survive. I'm sorry."  
  
Relena's face softened slightly at the last words. "I don't suppose you'll be staying very long, will you? If you can..." she made a vague gesture with her hand, probably indicating some sort of spell casting. She looked very disappointed, and Heero looked relieved. "If... if its not too much trouble, I wish you'd stay around for a little while, at least until my... until one of my aides returns from a trip."  
  
"We'll stay," Wufei suddenly spoke up in a voice completely unlike his own. He blinked several times. "I didn't say that!" he said in a furious voice.   
  
"Why do we have to stay?" Quatre asked, an intent expression on his face.  
  
"It's the damned libraries," Wufei growled, still furious. He rubbed his temples, eyes blinking rapidly as he processed the new information that had just appeared in his head. They all waited patiently, knowing what it was like, while Relena looked between them with an expression of bewilderment on her face. "That's why we're here. There's something in them... I don't know!"   
  
"The same thing that lady was looking for?" Duo asked suddenly, looking around the room.   
  
A silence met him, finally broken by the young queen's voice. "There's a lot you're not telling me, and I'm not sure if I want to know. My... aide specializes in the documents and scrolls that Lady Une was searching through, and I know he's removed a few for reasons that I did not understand. You are free to look through them yourselves, of course, but he will be returning in a week, and I believe he'd like to talk to you."  
  
It was Quatre, of course, who graciously accepted her invitation, but that didn't hide the frustration and anger they all felt. It wasn't as if they had a choice in the matter.   
  



	6. Part 5

Treize sat very still as he listened to a report sent to him by Lady Une, his face showing nothing of what he was feeling. The messenger finished reading it and stood waiting for a response of some sort. Treize stared into space for several minutes, waiting to see if his man would continue standing at attention while he waited. He was not disappointed - the man didn't budge. "Please leave that for me to look over," Treize said, waving a hand gracefully at the table. "What is your name?"  
  
"Adams, your majesty," the man said, placing the document on the table.   
  
"Thank you, Adams. That will be all, now." Treize carefully made note of the boy's name. He'd ask Adams' superiors what they thought of the boy, and if it checked out with what he'd observed, then he'd recommend him for a promotion. Unexpected moves like that were a good idea - it kept his underlings on their toes, and his men loved him for it.   
  
He dismissed the matter from his mind for later consideration and went back to the report. Lady Une was nothing if not thorough. Somehow she'd managed to get an entire transcript of the dialogue between Quatre, Queen Relena, and his own ambassador. If he wasn't so angry with his ambassador's performance, he would have thought the entire situation laughable. It would have been quite entertaining to watch a fifteen-year-old boy make a fool of the pompous ambassador in front of the entire court. Treize recalled that he'd sent the odious man there simply to get him out of the way in the first place.   
  
But losing a verbal sparring match to a child, even one as talented as Quatre was at court games, was unacceptable. It had been an audacious move on Quatre's part to appear before the Queen as mages, and then to use Treize's own propaganda against him, but an ambassador as experienced as Alex should have known how to turn the situation around. It didn't really matter. Lady Une said she had 'disciplined' him, and had asked for a replacement to be sent out immediately. Incompetence on that level was not permissible.   
  
At least now he knew where they were, even if they were temporarily out of reach. Lady Une had already stationed men around every possible exit of the castle with crystals that detected magic, so there wouldn't be any danger of the boys sneaking out under an illusion. They had to come out sometime, and there were dozens of ununiformed Oz agents waiting for them. The Lady was still trying to figure out how they'd gotten into the city and where they'd been for the past month and a half.  
  
That was all well and good - so why was he so unhappy with the report? Soon they would be back in his hands and things would be back under control. Why did the situation fill him with a sense of foreboding?   
  
Maybe it was that damned Queen who'd protected them, and used them to insult him in the process. A bit naïve, but a popular ruler, who'd taken over the country when her brother was deposed because he was a mage. Even the king of another country hadn't been out of his reach, he thought smugly. Milliardo Peacecraft had reluctantly surrendered his throne when Treize declared that he would have no dealings with a faery. The small Sank kingdom couldn't survive without interaction with the much larger Oz kingdom, and their king knew that. Rather than watch his country slowly suffocate under Treize's influence, he gave up the throne and disappeared before any of Treize's (disguised) Hunters could pick him up.  
  
Apparently the young queen was still holding a grudge over the incident. A bad policy in politics, especially given the size of his standing army outnumbered her entire population 2:1, but possibly useful for him. So what was it...  
  
He thought about it for a while longer, but was unable to come up with a reason for his unease. Finally he was forced to abandon the search - he had official state business to attend to. The search continued, but he did have a country to keep running.  
  
-------------------------------------------  
  
"Relena its good to see you again," Zechs Marquise said with a formal bow. "You said that you had something of interest to me here?" He was very proud of the way that he allowed none of the impatience he felt to show in his voice. He loved his sister dearly, and she was a wise ruler, but she didn't understand him at all.  
  
Former sister, he tried to remind himself, already knowing the effort was doomed. Strange how easily he left all aspects of his former life behind, save this one - he couldn't stop thinking of the Queen as his sister, although he'd forsaken all ties to protect her.   
  
"Yes. You know those documents and old scrolls that you removed from the library?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"In the last few weeks, two separate groups have shown definite interest in those very scrolls."  
  
Zechs raised his eyebrows before he remembered that Relena wouldn't be able to see the expression under the damned mask that he always wore now to disguise his identity. It was a pretty fiction - half of the court knew who he was anyway, but it kept the Oz ambassador from noticing him. It seemed like this time she really did have something of interest to tell him. "Who?"  
  
"The first was Lady Une of Oz. It's a good thing you removed those scrolls - I ran out of excuses to keep her out of the library after the first three weeks.," Relena frowned slightly at what she obviously saw as a failure on her part. "She's mostly given up now, but last week, an old friend of ours arrived."  
  
Zechs couldn't imagine who she was talking about. They'd had a fine enough childhood, he supposed, considering both of their parents were killed when they were quite young and they'd been raised by tutors, but they'd had virtually no friends. The guards were afraid of assassination attempts by anyone, so the only time they saw other kids their own age was when visiting nobles and dignitaries brought their children along. He could probably count those occurrences on one hand.   
  
Relena was getting awfully good at reading his expressions based on what she could see of his face - basically his mouth. "Quatre Winner."  
  
"Oh." That explained it. He'd been... what? Eight or nine when the Winner family came to visit, with every one of their uncountable daughters, ranging from ten years older than him to several younger. And the youngest child, the only boy, the heir... cute little thing with blond hair, but quiet. He must have been shy, because he hid all the time in his rooms. Zechs couldn't have spoken to him more than once or twice the entire visit, which lasted for several weeks.  
  
Zechs frowned as a hint of a memory, something he'd heard about the heir to the Winner estates drifted at the back of his mind, just out of reach. What had he heard?  
  
"I remember hearing something about the boy..."  
  
"He's a mage. Treize caught him and imprisoned him almost a year ago."  
  
Zechs' eyebrows shot up at that, too. So he'd been right to run after he turned the throne over to Relena. He'd half-thought that his position would keep him safe, but Quatre had been very close to the throne - if Treize was willing to imprison a member of the high Oz nobility, he wouldn't hesitate to lock up the deposed ruler of another land, if he could get his hands on him. "You gave him sanctuary," he stated. It wasn't a question. He couldn't think of anything else she would have done. "I'd heard that you'd publicly come out against Treize's policy. I'm assuming little Quatre was the reason?"  
  
"Not so little anymore, brother," she responded. "He's my age."   
  
"I'm not your brother," he reminded her, and she sighed.  
  
"Of course. In any case, he and several companions marched up to the gate and demanded sanctuary on restday, while I was holding judgment. There were a few dozen Oz soldiers on their heels, apparently."  
  
"A few dozen? Treize doesn't like them."  
  
"Not at all. Apparently they broke themselves out of the prison, and freed everyone else as well. When he appeared in front of me, he practically forced me to provide sanctuary for him, although I would have done it anyway. And the opportunity was too good to pass up."  
  
"I can imagine. I wish I could have seen Alex's face when you did that," Zechs smiled appreciatively. "But none of this explains why you thought I'd be interested."  
  
"Quatre... there's something very different about him and the ones he's traveling with. He hinted when he first arrived that if I hadn't sided with them, they would have fought their way out. Using magic. And... there are other strange things about them... I just thought that you might be interested in them. I know that no normal mage can do the things he hinted at."  
  
"What sort of things?" he asked suspiciously.  
  
"I don't know," she said with a helpless shrug. "But each one of them... all five of them... has a crystal with a spell set in it to make them look completely human. From what you've shown me and I've seen, those are incredibly expensive and difficult to set - I can't imagine where they got them."  
  
Zechs frowned slightly, finally admitting to himself that his sister had finally brought something important to his attention. If there are more out there with more than normal mage-power, it means that the shield is failing, and the Chosen will appear soon. They damn well better hurry. Thinking about the Chosen led him to another thought - one absolutely unbearable and entirely probable. "How... how many of them are there? The boys, I mean." Please, let me be wrong about this...  
  
"Five, including Quatre," she replied.   
  
Damn it! It looked like he might be right. "I need to see them," he said coldly, ignoring the startled look on his sister's face. "I need to see them now."   
  
"Um, they're all around the palace. I... Heero is exercising, and I... I think Quatre is in the gardens... I don't know where Wufei or Duo or Trowa are right now. I can find out if..."  
  
"No, that's all right. I will return soon," he said, and walked out of the room before she could stop him. The garden is closer than the exercise room, he thought, heading there. He had to find out if these were the ones he'd been waiting his entire life for.   
  
He stopped on the balcony that overlooked the garden and cautiously glanced down, careful to keep himself out of view of the people in the garden. Two of them - a boy with reddish hair that fell over half of his face, and a smaller boy with golden hair. He frowned slightly - there was only supposed to be one of them here, but there they sat, the taller one with his back against a tree, the blond leaning back against his chest. It was obvious that they were something more than friends. It didn't really matter. He could feel them, powerful both of them, but he'd felt strange stirrings before without it being the Chosen. No, he had to test them.   
  
The blond would be Quatre. He was assuming that the second was also one of the five, but he couldn't be sure. No, it would be safer to test the blond. He concentrated, drawing in energy until it crackled in the air around him and danced at the edges of his fingertips. The blond suddenly stiffened, and his friend looked around. Zechs stepped forward and, holding out his hand, cast lightening down at Quatre. It arched towards him at incredible speeds - he saw Quatre turn his head, saw fear in his eyes...  
  
Then the lightening impacted, not on one, but on two glowing shields of light, made entirely from magical energy. One was golden, sparkling all over with extra energy, and the other was a muted green, slightly inside the first, but no less powerful. Zechs' eyes widened and he involuntarily backed up a step. He'd been waiting for them all his life, but he'd never really realized how powerful they'd be! He'd never met anyone who was nearly as strong a mage as he was, and these... these children... the power rolled off them in waves and he got the impression that the shields both of them had raised had been entirely instinctive and mostly effortless.   
  
Suddenly Quatre's head snapped around as the shields disappeared, and he was staring directly at Zechs, and within that innocent-angel face, two eyes stared at him, dark and threatening. He was already on his feet, and behind him, the taller boy held out his arms and... he changed form. A hawk suddenly flew through the air at him, silently, but there was nothing reserved about the way it dove at his face, aiming for his eyes. He ducked, very glad for once of the stupid mask, and the hawk swooped over his head, then landed on the ground at the edge of the balcony, then became the taller boy again. Emotionless eyes stared at Zechs, but he had the feeling that the boy was anything but emotionless right now.   
  
He heard a footstep behind him, and saw two boys standing there, one a foreigner with black hair and slanted eyes, the other a boy with cold blue eyes and messy brown hair. The foreigner held a sword, looking like he was very, very familiar with the weapon, and the brown-haired boy held a strange triangular-shaped blade in each hand. Zechs froze as he recognized where he'd seen blades like that before - they were an assassin's tool, good either to be thrown or used in hand-to-hand combat. An assassin? A child assassin is one of the Chosen? his panicked mind asked.  
  
"I say we kill him," said a voice above his head, and he looked up to see another boy with a three-foot long braid standing on the roof above the balcony. There was a small blade in his hand, but somehow that didn't reassure Zechs very much. Unless the person was very skilled, it would take a lot of work to kill someone with a blade that size. If he was skilled, it would take even longer.   
  
There was a tingle along the back of his neck, and he turned back as Quatre rose through the air, glowing brightly, and landed on the banister at the edge of the balcony. He was the only one with no visible weapons - even his friend had a small knife in a sheath at his belt, but that didn't make him any less dangerous - maybe even moreso.   
  
I may have made a mistake testing him, Zechs thought as Quatre raised a glowing hand.  
  
Then, faced with five boys, each of whom could probably strip every inch of skin off his body and still leave him alive to talk about it, and aware of the fact that he had launched an unprovoked attack against one of them, he did the only thing he could think of - he bowed to Quatre.  
  
He saw the blond boy's mouth open slightly, then he pressed his lips together in a thin line and gestured with his hand. Zechs wasn't particularly reassured when his helmet/mask disappeared without an indication of where or how it had gone. Now Quatre's mouth really did drop open. "Milliardo?" he exclaimed.  
  
"You know this jerk?" asked the one with the long hair, leaping down from the roof with the grace and ease of a cat.   
  
"He is... was... Milliardo Peacecraft, Queen Relena's brother. He's a mage."  
  
Zechs felt a breeze on his face that pushed his long platinum blond hair out of the way, revealing his pointed ears.   
  
"We knew that when he used magic to attack Quatre," the long-haired boy pointed out. He turned to Zechs, still smiling evilly. "So, why'd you do it?"  
  
"I had to make sure it was you," Zechs said, burning in shame at the fear he was feeling, and also angry that he'd waited his whole life for the Chosen, and now they were here, and they were a bunch of children!  
  
"What?" The braided boy asked.   
  
"You are the Chosen ones, who will defend our world from the evil which is coming," he grated out, regretting every word. Children! Might as well slit their throats now and save himself the effort of teaching them! But he couldn't do that - his one purpose in life had been explained to him when he was forced to give up the throne, and that purpose was to try to prepare these adolescents for the battle that was coming, if that was possible. "I have been charged to teach you and show you your path."  
  
"What do you know about what is coming?" Quatre asked, eyeing him intently.   
  
"Quite a bit. What do you know?"  
  
"We know that we are... special. The first Masters in a thousand years," he said softly, putting a special emphasis on the word 'Masters' that Zechs couldn't place. "We're supposed to defend the world against... demons from another world. There has been a shield up around this world for a thousand years, which is why there's been so little magic, but it's coming down, and soon. We're supposed to draw our powers from special sources, but we weren't told what or how."  
  
"How... how do you know that much?" Zechs demanded, and found a blade pressed up against his throat by the still-smiling boy.  
  
"No, no, no, that's not the way it works," he said. "You have to tell us stuff now. Like why the hell you attacked Quatre."  
  
"I told you, I had to make sure it was you. There are more powerful mages in the world now then there used to be - I had to make sure you were the five."  
  
"And if I hadn't been? Then what would have happened?" Quatre asked calmly, although there was anger in his eyes.  
  
Zechs shrugged. "Nothing."  
  
Quatre frowned. "The Milliardo I knew would not have lied."  
  
"I'm not Milliardo. My name is Zechs Marquise. Milliardo Peacecraft is dead, as everyone knows."  
  
"Zechs Marquise?" the braided boy asked. "I've heard of you. They call you the Lightening Count. I thought it was a figure of speech."  
  
"Quatre Winner would have taken you at your word," Quatre said when his companion fell silent. "Unfortunately, he is also dead, and only Quatre remains, and he will do what is necessary to remain free. Now, answer the question truthfully - what would have happened if I hadn't been who and what I am?"  
  
"You would have been hit. The strike was not at full power - you probably would have survived."  
  
"Have you done this before?"  
  
"Once or twice. They survived."  
  
"Should I kill him?" asked the tall one, raising a hand negligently. Lightning ran around it in an endless loop and energy crackled in the air around that hand.  
  
"No, we need him alive," said the blue-eyed one in a dead voice. "At least for now."  
  
----------------------------------------------  
  
Zechs led them to his quarters, where he put on another mask, replacing the one that Quatre had destroyed. Then, polite even in the face of Duo's not-so-subtle questions about beheadings and torture, he asked them to sit while he rummaged around in his closet, presumably for the scrolls that Relena had said he'd removed from the library. Trowa wasn't sure how he felt about the former king, because he was certainly feeling something.   
  
Intellectually he could understand why Zechs had attacked Quatre - it had proven, instantly and conclusively, that they were the people he was looking for. He could understand that sort of ruthlessness, even respect it.   
  
But this was Quatre that they were talking about, Quatre he'd attacked to prove his theory. Trowa felt his hands clenching into fists at the very memory, and strove for control.   
  
Quatre, sensing what he was feeling, touched his hand gently and smiled at him, but Trowa wasn't comforted. He wasn't used to... to feeling this much. It was exhausting, and wearing away at his self-discipline.   
  
:What do you guys think?: Quatre asked uneasily.   
  
:It is dishonorable to attack an enemy without warning,: Wufei muttered.  
  
:Geeze, that was helpful Wufei. Why not tell us something we don't know. We know he shouldn't have done it! But what are we going to do now? He's got power, but we can take him, easy,: Duo put in.  
  
:He's very much like me,: Quatre said, not sounding happy with the idea.  
  
:What?!: Duo exclaimed as Trowa turned to look at his love in horror. :Where'd you come up with a stupid idea like that?!:  
  
:Look at it, Duo,: Quatre said gently, avoiding Trowa's gaze. :We were both the sons of rich, powerful men - we both lost everything because of what we are - we've both rejected our honor...:  
  
So that what was getting to him. Trowa reached out towards Quatre, who drew back from him and cried into his mind alone, :Don't touch me! I'm... I have nothing left, not even my honor! I don't deserve someone like you!:  
  
:Quatre, what do you think I am?: Trowa asked, shocked by the outburst from the normally calm, collected, and positive boy. :I never had any honor. I never have. I've killed many people, most of them for nothing more than money. If anything, I don't deserve you. You're an angel.:  
  
:No, I'm not,: Quatre corrected him. :I... I can't help it, but I hate Treize. Not for me, but what he did to everyone else. I'd kill him if I could. And... and when Milliardo... Zechs attacked us, I would have killed him too, if you hadn't been there, I would have! I was pulling my power together to strike him...:  
  
Trowa stared at Quatre in astonishment. It had to be impossible for anyone to be that innocent, that forgiving, didn't it? Quatre couldn't possibly be blaming himself that he was mad at Treize, who'd tortured him, or Zechs, who had tried to kill him. It was absolutely absurd. But yet, there it was - that was definitely what he was feeling. It was then that Trowa did something he hadn't done for as long as he could remember.   
  
He laughed.  
  
It started out as a low chuckle, but soon he was laughing very loudly, tears running down his cheeks as the others stared at him in horror.   
  
It took him several minutes to get control of himself. When he finally did, Quatre was staring at him with wide, scared eyes. "Trowa? Are you all right?" he asked in a whisper.   
  
"I'm fine," Trowa told him. "You... you're amazing."  
  
"He's exactly the way he has to be," Zechs said in a grumpy voice.   
  
They all stared at him. "What?" Duo asked sharply.   
  
"If you don't want me to hear your conversations, you shouldn't shout," Zechs said, setting several books down on his bed. "I heard you," he tapped his helmet. "And I said that he is that... that forgiving because he has to be."  
  
"What do you mean?" Trowa asked sharply, his arms tightening protectively around Quatre.   
  
"Whoever it was that told you everything left out a few critical details," Zechs said, a smug smile on his face. "It's obvious he's the Desert Prince. He gets his power from people. He can't get mad... well, he can't stay mad at other humans - if he did, he'd probably lose his power. Safeguards against that sort of thing are built into your personalities so that you won't lose your powers - that would be a disaster. He's psychologically incapable of those sorts of emotions." Zechs looked vaguely disgusted.   
  
"What?!" Quatre asked, an expression of outrage on his face. "That's impossible!"  
  
"Why? The rest of us are the same," Zechs said, looking even more disgusted. "We've all been planned very carefully so that we could use our powers to the biggest advantage. These things have been coming for a thousand years now."  
  
"What do you mean, planned?" Duo asked. "I'm an orphan." He glanced around. "Half of these guys are."  
  
"So? We're talking about fate here, not family lines," Zechs growled. "I'll prove it. Have any of you ever used your powers for your own personal benefit, previous to your escape from Treize?"  
  
Trowa looked at Quatre, who swallowed, and then glanced around the circle. It didn't take a genius to figure out what the answer would be. "I didn't," Quatre said unnecessarily. "Not even when I was captured."  
  
"I didn't, but just because Treize was watching me," Duo said defensively. "And..." he hung his head. "I've never used them for myself. The only person I ever used my power on consciously was Solo, and look what happened then."  
  
"Using my power would have been too obvious," Heero stated bluntly.  
  
"I'm sure that you all have perfectly good reasons for not using your powers for personal gain, when the fact is that any of you had enough power to steal, or even earn enough money to settle down in another country where our kind aren't hunted like animals, and be wealthy enough to live like kings. For that matter, you could probably create the wealth. But you didn't, for much the same reason that I did not leave the Sank kingdom when I was forced off the throne. We all have jobs to do - me to instruct you, and you to fight."  
  
Trowa could feel the growing anger in those around him, not at Zechs but at whoever or whatever it was that had forced them to the Sank kingdom and presumably to this meeting had been playing with them long before they escaped. The thought angered him as well, not for himself, but for Quatre, but he pushed those emotions aside. "You said you're supposed to instruct us," he observed, not because he thought anyone had missed it, but because he wanted them to calm down. "What are you supposed to teach us?"  
  
Zechs turned his mask towards him. "Some things about your power that you might not know - some more about combining your power. Most of this you could probably figure out on your own, but more importantly I know about your enemy, and about the last Chosen, the ones who lived a thousand years ago and gave their lives to put up the shield around our world."  
  
"Gave their lives?" Duo repeated. "I thought they just cast a spell."  
  
Zechs looked at him, and even the mask couldn't hide the disgust on his face. "You think a simple casting could make a spell like that? They sealed the spell with their own blood, that was the only way it would last long enough for you to be born! Have you ever seen one of these?" he asked, reaching into another drawer and withdrawing a black stone.   
  
He tossed it to Quatre, who caught it, then cried out in pain and tossed it back in the air. It landed on the bad, and Quatre stared down at his own hands, which were burned and red. They glowed briefly, then returned to normal as he healed himself. "What is that?!" he demanded. "It's evil!"   
  
Zechs stared at him, pulled on a pair of gloves, and then picked up the stone. "That's the strongest reaction I've ever seen," he muttered. "It actually burned you?"  
  
"Yes! It hurts! I mean, it hurt me, but there's something inside that hurts, too..."  
  
Zechs nodded. "This is an example of the blood magic that the demons used against your predecessors. One of my duties was to find and destroy as many of these as I could, but I had to keep one to show you."  
  
Trowa stared at the stone as he spoke, noticing now that it was actually a crystal, but instead of the normal pink/white color, this one was black. As he stared, he blinked, because for an instant he'd seen a black/red glow around it, and the face of an old man staring out at him from within the depths of the crystal with an expression of sadness. He jerked slightly and shook his head, trying to dispel the disturbing image. Where had that come from?  
  
"What is it?" Quatre repeated, staring at the stone with a sort of horrified fascination.  
  
"It is a crystal, made by the demon masters a thousand years ago. They made these from the lives of mages - they'd hunt them down and kill them in spell. As the mages' blood spilled on the stone, their life energy and magical power was trapped in the crystal, which turns black from the blood. Then the demons could use the mages' power as if it was their own. In the old times, your predecessors had the aid of all the mages who were alive and not being controlled by the demons, because if the demons got this world, they would all be killed that way. You will not have any help, because it would take a thousand of today's mages to equal the power of one of the normal old mages, not to mention the powerful ones. But that also means that the demons will not have any extra mage energy on their side, so it comes out even again. The real fight will be between yourselves and the demon-controlled humans. They don't even have to be mages, although most of them were last time." He rolled the stone from one gloved hand to another, then casually tossed it onto the bed. "Now that you've seen it and you know what dark blood magic looks like, I can destroy this one as well. I'll destroy it after I finish training you. It takes quite a bit of energy on my part, and I'll be flat on my back for a few weeks afterwards."  
  
"Gently," Trowa said quietly, finally figuring out what he'd seen in the stone. "There's a man's soul in there."  
  
"What?!" Zechs actually sounded surprised as he froze in the action of picking up the stone again.  
  
The others stared at him, and Trowa looked at the ground, not liking having all this attention focused on him. "I saw an old man staring out of the center of the crystal," he said. "He's trapped in there, and has been for a thousand years."  
  
Zechs picked up the stone, holding it more carefully than he had before. "What else do you see?" he asked, walking over and holding the stone out for Trowa to touch. Trowa felt Quatre pulling in slightly, trying to get as far away from the stone as he could. Trowa nerved himself and then reached out a hand to touch the stone.   
  
To his surprise, it didn't hurt him at all. He was instantly confronted with the desire to wash his hand in the cleanest, most pure stream he could find, just to get the reek of the filth of the stone off of him, but it didn't hurt him. Trying not to grimace in disgust, he ran his fingertips lightly over the surface, and once again saw the old man looking out at him, this time his expression vaguely hopeful. "He wants to be free. He died a thousand years ago, he wants to move on already," Trowa said. "He has family waiting for him there." He finally shuddered and withdrew his hand, wiping it several times on the thick rug on the floor, trying to get rid of the contamination. He felt Quatre's comforting presence in the back of his mind.   
  
"He died in agony," Quatre said softly, tears shining in his eyes. "They tortured him to death to get his power." He bit his lip. "That's all I can see. His life is in there, as well - his memories - but I can't see past the pain." He closed his eyes and turned his head away from the stone.   
  
"And you?" Zechs asked, looking at the others. Heero held out his hand, and Zechs handed him the stone.   
  
Heero's reaction was almost as bad as Quatre's. The stone seemed to leap out of his hand, and Zechs barely managed to catch it. Heero stared at his burned hands until they started glowing bright white light, and when that light faded, his hands were fine. "Energy," he grunted. "A life."  
  
Zechs held the stone out to Wufei, who refused to touch it. "I see..." he broke off and shuddered. "I should not touch it. It might take over my mind." He declined to explain his words, but Trowa noticed that he was avoiding looking at the stone directly.  
  
"Guess it's my turn," Duo said, and took the stone from Zechs. His violet eyes immediately went vague, and his mouth dropped open slightly. After a few seconds he blinked and swallowed. "Power..." he said softly. "I sense so much power... the mages were more powerful than we ever imagined. But it's tainted." He frowned. "The guy's soul has been tied here far too long," he said with a determined look in his eyes. Trowa felt Duo do something that made his energy increase exponentially, and then that energy was directed into the stone. The stone started to glow black, and then it started to shake in his hands, but the stone refused to let go of it's victim.   
  
Trowa continued to stare at the man in the stone, unable to tear his mind away from the man who now stood up, fighting the circumstances of his death with all his might. He was... what? He was trying to say something...  
  
"Blood!" Quatre suddenly shouted. "It's not just his blood that's there! The demons tied the stone to themselves with a drop of their own blood!"  
  
Duo suddenly grinned in that bone-chilling way. "Blood, huh?" he asked, and then pulled out one of his knives, and quickly pricked his own index finger with the point. A few drops of red blood welled up and then dropped onto the stone, where they were instantly absorbed by the crystal. Duo's grin broadened slightly, and Trowa felt the slightest surge of energy from the violet-eyed boy, and the crystal dissolved in his hands, turning into dust and falling to the ground. For a second there was a little pile of dust there, then that, too, dissolved away to nothing.   
  
There was an explosion of power from somewhere incredibly distant, but also right there in the room. There was a flash of light in front of Duo, with resolved itself into the glowing figure of the old man Trowa had seen in the crystal, mostly transparent, like a ghost.  
  
The ghost reached out a hand towards Duo's head. :Thank you, my son,: he whispered, and then the light disappeared.  
  
They all stared in shock, first at Duo, then at the spot where the ghost had been standing.   
  
Duo recovered first, and decided to break up the tension in his usual tasteless fashion. He turned to Zechs, a superior smile on his face, and asked, "Have you ever seen that before, Mr. Smartypants?"  
  
--------------------------------------------  
  
"Where did you learn blood magic?" Zechs demanded in a hoarse voice when he recovered.   
  
"The faeries," Duo said with a shrug. "Are you going to teach us or not?" Duo was trying to cover up the fact that he was very, very frightened by what had just happened. He'd just touched that man's soul - just for a fraction of a second, but that didn't change the fact that he'd done it. He knew that he'd done good with his power, possibly for the first time in his life, but at such a price! He felt so dirty... Is this the way his power worked? Either he killed, or he felt so disgusted with himself that he wished he could turn his power on himself?   
  
Zechs shook his head slightly, gathering his composure, and Duo noticed how the older man unconsciously drew back away from him. He senses it too. He knows what I am, he observed dryly.   
  
"I can tell you who you are, for starters, and I believe I know why you had the reactions you just had," Zechs said, still looking at all of them as if they'd just grown a second head. At least, that's what Duo was assuming that look was for - it was kinda tough to tell with the stupid helmet.   
  
"So spill it," Duo said in his coldest voice, and saw the others turn to stare at him.   
  
"You get your power from Death," Zechs said, and Duo snorted.  
  
"Tell me something I don't know."  
  
"In the prophecies, you're usually referred to as the Laughing Killer. Because of your power you should have an affinity and better understanding for the next world than most people, which was probably why you were able to free the man so easily, and how he could manifest himself in your presence." There was a hint of uncertainty in his voice, as if he were just guessing, and hoping that he guessed right. Duo hadn't missed the slight bitterness in his voice when he talked about how easily Duo had freed the man, when earlier Zechs had mentioned that it took him weeks to recover from doing the same thing. "Your power comes from Death in general, not violent or premature death, which is unique. There are others who can get power from death - that stone was a prime example of that type of magic - but you don't need to do that. An old man dying in his sleep will provide as much energy for you as any type."  
  
But what if I don't want power from anyone, even some old guy who's had a good long life? Duo protested mentally, but kept his objections to himself. He'd seen enough of this Zechs/Milliardo person to realize that this guy wasn't in control of his situation any more than they were, and was considerably more bitter because of it. It wasn't his fault that Duo was what he was.  
  
Zechs turned to Heero. "Your power comes from Life. You're usually called the Solemn Soldier in the prophecies - I wonder where that one came from," he said facetiously, but Heero didn't show any signs of being amused. Not that he ever did. "You get energy from living things - again, no spells required, their lives just fuel your energy by their existence. Your power is essentially incompatible with the blood-magic that they used to make the stone, which is probably why it burned you. You could feel the life energy trapped in there, but you couldn't touch it. Am I right?" Heero glared at him, but nodded slightly.   
  
Duo felt a knot of unreasoning resentment at this announcement. How come I get stuck with Death while an assassin gets life? he wondered, and for a second the resentment was aimed directly at Heero. That emotion lasted only a second, though. It wasn't Heero's fault that his power was life any more than it was Duo's fault his power was Death. Unless I did something to deserve this. But that was impossible... wasn't it? In any case, there was no reason for him to hate Heero about this. He hadn't quite figured out whose fault it was, and when he did, he intended to hunt them down and carve out their heart with a spoon, but for now, there was nothing he could do about it, so he let the thought slide out of his mind. Not thinking was always easier than the alternative.   
  
"Your power comes from Magic itself," Zechs said to Wufei, who looked unimpressed. "And in the prophecies you're called the Foreign Dragon, because most of the prophecies were written by people from our own land. In others, you're simply called the Dragon." Wufei grunted softly. "Your power comes from the presence of magic in the world. I would imagine that your power will suddenly increase greatly when the barrier comes down." Wufei nodded slightly, a calculating look in his eyes. "And you refused to touch the stone. Why?"  
  
Wufei glared at him, doing a fair imitation of Heero's 'I'm going to kill you' look, but answered. "My symbol was on it, carved on it in power."  
  
"Your what?" Duo asked without thinking.   
  
"My symbol. My clan sign, along with my personal one. It had no business being on that... that twisted thing." Now Wufei was glaring at him.  
  
"Oh." Duo thought how he would feel if his secret name had been on that thing, and shivered. "Sorry. So... you think it was a trap, or something?"  
  
Wufei evidently was surprised at the apology, and thought for a few seconds before he answered. "The stone is ancient. I do not know how they knew what my symbol would be so many years ago, and I distrust that. The magic itself was tainted, evil, and I mistrust that even more. It is possible that I could have somehow filtered the magic so it was useable again, but it is also possible that touching that with my own power could have somehow contaminated me. It could have been a trap that way, or it could simply be a warning, telling me how powerful they were, that they knew such things. But I would not touch it unless I knew."  
  
It was the longest single statement Duo had ever heard from him, excepting his rants on 'onna's' (he'd finally figured out that word meant women) and justice in general. He had a lot to say on those two topics, and almost nothing to say about anything else, besides occasionally calling Duo a baka. (He'd been very insulted when he finally got Quatre to tell him that it meant something like 'idiot'.) So this was very impressive, in Duo's eyes.  
  
"That's a good idea. If you don't know what something is, trust your instincts. They'll keep you alive more often then not. Your power," he said, turning to Trowa, "Comes from nature, as you've probably guessed already. I'm not sure why, but the prophecies call you the Masked Clown."  
  
Duo burst out laughing at that. "How do you like that?" he exclaimed. "How do you think they knew that long ago that you'd be a circus clown? Hey, do you... OW!" he shouted at Heero grabbed the end of his braid and pulled hard.  
  
"Do you think they knew you'd be such a baka?" Heero muttered, but there was a strange light in his eyes. For once they didn't look entirely dead. It was the first time he'd called Duo 'baka', either.   
  
Duo grinned. This was too much fun. "I'm not a baka!" he exclaimed. "And I'd thank you if you... OW!" he shouted as Heero tugged again. All right, this will be less fun if he scalps me. Note to self: don't try this when he's got a hold of my braid. Duo grabbed his own braid above where Heero was holding it in an attempt to protect his head. "Come on, Heero... OW!" Well, that hadn't worked. Duo finally fell silent. He could try again later, when Heero wasn't within arm's reach.   
  
Zechs turned back to Trowa, who was watching him with the same calm-eyed gaze that he turned on everything. Boy, had it been creepy when he suddenly started laughing before...  
  
"Your power comes from the Earth itself. That's about all I can tell you. Apparently the last Earth-Chosen was quite close-mouthed about himself. I'd stay away from the wastelands, though, if I were you. That is the most unnatural place I've ever seen."  
  
Trowa nodded, but Duo couldn't resist asking, "You've been to the wastelands?"  
  
"I visited it, briefly." Zechs' tone discouraged questioning, but not as much as Heero's slight warning tug on Duo's braid.   
  
Finally Zechs turned to Quatre, who swallowed but raised his chin as he faced Zechs. "Your power comes from people, as I mentioned before. The prophecies call you the Desert Prince." A flash of pain crossed over Quatre's face before he got control of himself. "You get your power from the people in general, and the mages, such as they are, in specific. I'm assuming you're something of a leader, because you may have to lead the mages that you people freed against the enemy. Because of the nature of your power, if you ever really hated a person, it would cut you off from your power."  
  
"Why is it that way?" Quatre asked. "Duo never killed anyone until his power emerged, but he didn't lose it, and Heero has killed, but he hasn't lost his power. Why am I... why can't I..." he trailed off helplessly, an irritated expression on his face.   
  
"Because your power is strongly tied into love. It's the only power that really has emotions tied to it. The rest can exist independent of emotions, because they have little to do with humans themselves, just with their existence. Because just being there isn't what makes a human - it's the soul. And souls are linked by love, not by hate." Zechs made a noise in the back of his throat, and Duo would have sworn that he was raising an eyebrow. "That is a direct quote from one of the journals of your predecessor, by the way. Apparently he had similar questions to you."  
  
"Journals?" Quatre asked, looking interested. "Could I read one? I'd love to see how our... um, predecessors thought."  
  
"I can do better than that. Now that I've told you this, I can discharge with the main part of my duty," Zechs said, rising.   
  
"You mean that was it? That's all you're going to tell us?"  
  
"That is all I am allowed to tell you right now. However, there are more things that you have to know before I can start teaching you how to fully use your powers. Come on."  
  
Duo's curiosity was roused to the point that he didn't make any smart comments as they rose to follow Zechs. That and the fact that despite them getting up to move, Heero hadn't let go of his braid. "Hey, Heero, think you could let go yet?" Duo asked as he stumbled slightly, trying to keep his head close enough to Heero so he wouldn't get his head yanked.  
  
"No," Heero said succinctly, but Duo stared at him. Was it just him, or was Heero actually smiling slightly? Nah, it had to be his imagination, he decided as he walked right next to Heero, hands on his own head, holding it protectively. There was no way he'd seen even a hint of a smile on Heero's face. Was there?  
  



	7. Part 6

I feel that I should clarify something: on one of the previous chapters, someone commented on how fast I write. While I do consider myself a fast writer, I'm not turning out two or three chapters a day! Each chapter is 10 - 15 pages long, and takes me anywhere between three days and three weeks to get out, depeding on what's going on in my normal life, etc. I started this story months ago, and right now I'm posting them whenever I get the time to change the files into txt format. Once I get to eleven or twelve, though, it's probably going to slow down a lot, because I'll actually have to write the chapters, not just convert them.  
Thanx for all of the comments I've gotten on this story - it's really encouraging me to write more.  
  
  
  
Zechs led them down several flights of stairs, until they were down in the bowels of Relena's castle, in an area that was most definitely a dungeon, and Quatre stirred uneasily. The last place with bars he'd seen had been the compound, and he didn't want to think about that place. "What are we doing down here?" he asked.  
  
"I hid the Crystal down here. My sister doesn't use more than a quarter of her prisons, and only on the most dangerous criminals, so it was safer down here." There was a definite emphasis on the way he said 'crystal', but he didn't explain it.  
  
"You wanted to protect something, so you stuck it among the worst criminals in your country. That was bright," Duo remarked sarcastically. Surprisingly, Heero didn't give pull on his braid for that comment - apparently he thought it was a legitimate concern. Either that or he was finally taking pity on Duo's head. No, probably not. Quatre hadn't missed the hint of a smile on Heero's face as he grabbed onto Duo's braid, but Heero was doing his best to make sure that Duo never saw anything unusual from him. It was a very interesting thing to watch, Duo trying to get a reaction out of Heero, and getting one, but Heero hiding it, so that Duo kept trying even harder. Funny to watch, sometimes, too. Quatre wondered how much longer Heero could keep up the act.   
  
"I wasn't trying to protect it from humans," Zechs said in a sharp voice. "It's safe from them - a human who tried to move it would be instantly killed. I was protecting it from Treize and the few of his Hunters who could touch it."  
  
Quatre's head spun around. "What?!"  
  
Zechs frowned. "You didn't know?"  
  
"What?!"  
  
"Treize is a mage, the same as most of his former prisoners. Some of his best Hunters are minor mages, as well. He's a hypocrite, as well as a number of other things. He turned those like himself into animals in his own kingdom, and then tried to do the same in mine." That was the first time Quatre could remember Zechs referring to the Sank kingdom as his own - that was the sort of thing Milliardo would have said. He was having less trouble keeping Milliardo and Zechs separate in his own mind then he would have a year ago. He was two people, too - they didn't have completely different names, like Zechs/Milliardo, but they were separate just the same.   
  
"How did you know?"  
  
"You forget, Quatre, I'm several years older than you. I saw Treize when I was very young, long before he declared that mages weren't human, even before he started with this obsession about prophecies. Back then he displayed his ears quite openly, almost like he was daring someone to look down on him because of it. Then he started reading those prophecies, and hiding his ears. By the time he declared that mages weren't human, few people remembered that he was a mage himself, and those that did either kept their mouths shut on their own or were silenced by the Hunters. His first hunters were the few mages who joined him of their own free will, you know."  
  
Quatre shook his head in disbelief. I always knew that he was more dangerous than I knew, but not why, and that some of the Hunters were more dangerous than others, and not because of their physical strengths. It was incredible, but it made a sort of twisted sense. He'd known that Treize didn't really believe the nonsense he spouted about the mages, and he could very easily Treize having that sort of secret while he locked up his own people, if he really believed that he was doing the right thing. It still wasn't right, but he could very easily see it, even understand it, a little...  
  
Quatre cut off his thoughts as Zechs unlocked and opened a very large, thick wooden door, braced with metal strips. The door swung open and immediately their eyes, which had finally started to get used to the gloom down here, were assaulted by bright white light. Quatre held up his hand to shield his eyes against the light, instinctively stepping forward towards the source. It felt... good. He was dimly aware of the others doing the same thing.   
  
When his eyes finally adjusted, Quatre saw that they were standing in a circle around a low table. On that table was a huge crystal, the biggest one he'd ever seen, easily three feet tall and five in diameter. It was what was glowing, bright white, and just being around it seemed comforting to him. He found himself smiling without any good reason, and glanced around the circle, and saw shock and wonder reflected on the faces of all of his companions, even those who usually didn't admit to any emotions.   
  
"What... what is it?" he asked after a few minutes of basking in the stone's glow. He noticed that Zechs had backed up into the corner of the room, getting as far away as possible from the stone without actually leaving the room. "What's wrong?"  
  
"It's the stone," Zechs said, turning his head away from it. "This is the crystal your predecessors used to trap their essences and their power to build the shield. It's been waiting for you for a thousand years. It's your inheritance, in a manner of speaking."  
  
"But you..."  
  
"It has ways of making sure that it was not tampered with. The truth is that no human would be able to get close enough to be killed by it. The stone emits a feeling of discomfort, aversion even, to everyone except those to whom it belongs. It allowed me to touch it long enough to move it, but since then it doesn't want me any nearer than anyone else. Right now... it is tolerating me, because it knows I must be here to instruct you, but it is still not... pleasant."  
  
"Zechs... who are you?" Quatre asked suddenly. "You have more power than the... the normal mages, but you're not one of us, either."  
  
Zechs snorted. "I'm your protector, and the protector of this stone, and the prophecies and the information they contain. My only purpose is to help you. Because of that I have been given some additional powers, weaker than those of the old mages, but close. I can do little more than what you've already seen." His voice was bitter, and Quatre understood. Bad enough to be pushed along because of a destiny you didn't know or understand or want, but it would be even worse to be pushed into a destiny where all you could do was help someone else, not have a purpose yourself.  
  
"I..." he started to say, wanting to comfort Zechs, but Zechs cut him off.  
  
"Don't. It's not your fault. Just go. Put your hands on the Crystal, and it will give you answers. Go. It's your destiny." Quatre heard the slight emphasis on the second-to-last word, but the others immediately put their hands on the stone, and he quickly followed suit. There was an immediate feeling of welcome, then a bright flash of light...  
  
Quatre opened his eyes and saw that they were no longer standing in Relena's dungeon. Instead, they were standing on the same plain they'd been standing on in the first dream, the one that prompted them to break out of the compound. Again there was that feeling of anticipation hanging in the air, but not of the desperation that had marked the dream. The rest of it, the endless rolling plains, the black clouds... it was all the same.  
  
"We're back here!" Duo cried in tones of dismay, looking around.  
  
"Not exactly," said a voice that didn't belong to anyone in the group. Quatre spun around and saw a group of five people walking towards them from five different directions. The one who'd just spoken was the one headed for Duo, a young woman dressed entirely in black, a pair of pants and a shirt with a an over shirt with a number of long pieces of flimsy black fabric trailing behind her, waving slightly in the wind. Two huge bat-like wings rose from her back, and she had short brown hair, sharply pointed ears, and the same violet eyes as Duo, and in her hand was a large scythe. She set the end of it on the ground and leaned against it, the blade curving through the air above her head. "You aren't really here now, you never were here, and you never will be here, because this place doesn't exist anymore. This is simply... well, it's a little more solid than a vision, and a little less than reality. Let's just call it a bubble of existence out of time. In your time, this place is located in a region that you call the wastelands."  
  
"This... this is what the wastelands used to look like?" Quatre asked, never taking his eyes off the black-clad girl. He was purposefully avoiding looking at any of the other newcomers. He had a feeling he wasn't ready to see them yet.   
  
"Yes. Beautiful, wasn't it? There were tribes of nomads scattered all over," the girl replied, a sad look in her eyes as she gestured with her free hand. "I grew up on these plains."  
  
"Who the fuck are you?" Duo demanded.  
  
The girl's eyes sparkled with amusement. "Death at your service," she said, bowing deeply to them, never letting go of the scythe.   
  
"Thanatos[1], you're scaring them," scolded a voice behind Quatre. He swallowed, and turned. There was a boy with black hair and green eyes standing a few feet away from him, smiling pleasantly. He was dressed in tan pants and a white shirt, and two glowing gossamer wings rose from his back. "They're on our side, remember?"  
  
"Just joking around, Gente[2]," the girl said. "Go ahead."  
  
The boy turned back to Quatre, who felt a shiver run down his spine. "My apologies. We are... I believe that Zechs has been referring to us as your predecessors, which is correct, although not entirely accurate. We are your predecessors, but we are more than that. More like earlier incarnations of yourselves. You are us, born over again. Different souls, but mirrors of each other. It's complicated. But we are the ones who battled the demon lords a thousand years ago, and we're going to pass our knowledge and power onto you. We trapped our spirits here for two purposes - first to build the shield, second to still be around to teach you. Once we teach you, the shield will fall within a year, and we will finally be able to pass on." He smiled in relief and anticipation.  
  
"You... you've been waiting here a thousand years, just for us?" Quatre asked.  
  
"No, we've been waiting for the whole world," corrected a young woman with platinum hair in a long braid down her back. She was dressed in an indecently short dress made of a red material, a sword was strapped to her back, and fiery wings sprouted from her back. "You just happen to be the way that we show our caring for the whole world. I must say I am disappointed with my present form," she said, gazing at Wufei with distaste.   
  
"I was an onna?!" Wufei shouted, outraged.   
  
"See? It's just a good thing that one of our present incarnations wasn't female, or we'd be in big trouble," she observed, looking down her nose at Wufei. "I can't believe that I waited a thousand years to be reborn and got reborn as a male chauvinist."  
  
Wufei was looking like he was about to explode, but Quatre was distracted by a comment from Gente. "It's good to be together again."  
  
Quatre stared at him. "Haven't you guys been together here the whole time?"  
  
"We couldn't," the girl standing near Wufei said with a toss of her head that sent her braid flying. "Our lives went to different parts of the spell that would protect our world and bring us back here when it was time to pass on our power. There wasn't much intermingling of our essences."  
  
"She's sugar-coating it for you," Thanatos said with a grin much like Duo's. "This is the first time any of us has had any company in the last thousand years. Gets kinda lonely after the first few hundred, and watching those who are still alive wandering around on the surface loses interest after the first five hundred." For a second her grin faltered and her face reflected great loss before it disappeared and was covered by that grin again. "It will be good to move on," she said softly.   
  
"Hn."   
  
For a second, Quatre thought that it was Heero, but then he saw that the sound had come from the oriental boy standing just beyond Heero, dressed entirely in white and with white feathered wings rising from his back. He wore a sword at his side, and one hand always rested on it. His eyes flashed with emotion for a moment as he grunted agreement to Thantos' words, but then they were back to blank black pools.   
  
"We should start," murmured the last of their predecessors, the one nearest Trowa, a young man with long reddish hair worn in a ponytail that ran down his back. He was dressed entirely in green, and carried a bow in one hand. A quiver of arrows sat on his back, in between two large brown feathered wings. They shook slightly before folding down on his back, making him look as if he had some huge deformity in his back.   
  
"Of course, Gael[3]," Gente replied with another smile, and Quatre found himself smiling in return. "Meet back here in a few hours? Vida[4]?" he asked, looking at the boy garbed in white, who nodded and then looked around.  
  
The others nodded their agreement, and suddenly everyone except Gente vanished. "Where?" Quatre asked.  
  
"They've retreated to their own areas to teach your friends what they need to know. From their perspective, we're the ones who've disappeared. It's all relative, here."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Is this all coming a little too fast?"  
  
"A bit," Quatre said with a shrug. "I'm not sure I'm happy with the idea that someone was messing around with my personality."  
  
Gente stared at him. "Who told you that?"  
  
"Zechs."  
  
Gente shook his head. "He's got the right idea, but he doesn't understand. I was originally picked to protect the world by drawing power from people simply because my personality was best suited to it. Of course, the fact that I was quite a powerful mage didn't hurt, either." He smiled sadly. "I only lived a few dozen years on this world, and I spent a thousand watching it from afar, and I still can't get used to the idea of how little magic there is in your world now."   
  
"You only lived a few dozen years?" for some reason that seemed to be the saddest thing of all.  
  
"Twenty-eight, to be exact. You're just seeing me as I was when I first got the power. We fought for twelve years before we finally fought them off. Almost half our lives," he said without a hint of bitterness or rancor. He wasn't at all angry that his entire life had been torn from him, practically, first with years of fighting that wore him down until he was a mere shadow of himself, and then stole what remained when he killed himself with the others to protect the world they'd fought for.   
  
Quatre started - how had he seen all that?  
  
Gente nodded. "I always was more sensitive than the others to stray thoughts - I see you share the same trait. It doesn't matter - I was going to show it all to you anyway. Part of what I'm going to teach you is how to shield yourself, so you won't be picking up stray thoughts anymore. But back to the point. Before we go on, I want you to understand that whatever tampering the magic did with you was incidental. You weren't molded to fit the magic - the magic was made so that it worked for people with personalities like us. That's why we're so much alike - the magic wouldn't work for someone who was different. That doesn't mean that you are any different then you would have been otherwise. If you'd been born a few generations earlier, you would have just lived out your life normally, and been known as a very nice person. That's it. So don't you worry that you're somehow not yourself anymore. Same for the rest of the others - they're just who they would have been if they didn't have the magic - the magic just... intensifies some feelings."  
  
"Intensifies?"  
  
"Well, take your Trowa, for example. I bet that if he was normal, he would just avoid people, except for the few he forces himself to get close to, to remind himself of his humanity. Gael used to do that. But because of the power... well, nature isn't an enemy of mankind, exactly, but I saw the power take over Gael once, and he obliterated a mining camp that was absolutely destroying the forest around it - it was horrible - but what Gael did to those men was horrible, too." He frowned. "You have to be very careful, because the power will act for itself, if you don't watch out. Anyway, because of the power, Gael had to force himself to talk to people. His power wanted him to be alone, and it was the way he was, too, but he didn't want to be controlled by the power, so he forced himself to interact with people. I don't know if your Trowa will be the same, but if he has trouble with people, it may not be entirely his fault. Try to keep that in mind."  
  
"I will," Quatre said with a nod.   
  
Gente smiled. "I know you will. I never had a relationship with any of the others beyond friendship. It might have been easier if I had, but I know you'll do well."  
  
"You didn't..."  
  
Gente's smile faltered slightly. "Strange, isn't it? Life and Death, Magic and Nature. In the words of my untactful colleague, 'You're great at loving people in general, mediocre at loving a few people, and pretty bad at loving just one person.[5]' A little cruel, but accurate in my case. I don't think you have that problem, and for that I'm grateful, even if the relationship is a little... unconventional."  
  
My father would disown me again, if he found out, Quatre thought, but the memory of his father disowning him, abandoning him when he refused to admit that what Treize was doing was wrong - it didn't hurt quite as much as it used to. His father had been willing to interfere on his behalf, not because he thought that Treize was wrong and the mages were people and not animals, but because he thought that his son was special. His father couldn't understand why he would choose imprisonment and slavery to stay with the people who he considered animals - similarly, he would never be able to understand what he and Trowa were building.  
  
He deliberately steered his mind away from such disturbing thoughts and back to Gente, who looked nothing like him but was already like the brother he never had.  
  
"Don't get too attached to me, Quatre," Gente said. "Don't forget, I'm still dead, and as soon as the shield comes down, my spirit will finally depart. None of this is real."  
  
"So are you going to teach me or not?" Quatre asked quietly. It was almost impossible to remember that the boy standing next to him was dead. Except that he could see clearly into Gente's mind, and he could see the boy - no man's - very clear memories of his own death. "You know, this might be easier if you didn't look like this. Show me what you looked like when you died."  
  
Gente stared at him with a sad expression on his face. "You know, it took me eight years to become as hard as you are now."  
  
"Hard?" Quatre had heard himself described a lot of ways in other people's minds. The most common thought was 'angel', which wasn't really their fault - he couldn't help the way he looked, but it bothered him when people looked at him like he was a sacred object or something. He didn't think that 'hard' had ever come into anyone's mind. Ever.  
"We were all... we all had our weaknesses, although I was the worst. The responsibility came on us too quickly, we didn't know what was happening. The first you must also deal with, but perhaps the second we can ease. We have the knowledge, but what I was really worried about was that you'd be weak, like me. I couldn't even conceive of killing another person. Did you know it was years before I was able to bring myself to kill another human, even those I knew who were being controlled by the demons? Astonishing, isn't it? That I could be in a war and not kill."  
  
"I still haven't killed. Not with my magic, anyway."  
  
"Not surprising. We're not supposed to be able to feel that way, even about our enemies. It was over a year before I could get myself angry enough to try, and then my power failed me. I can teach you how to make sure that doesn't happen, but I saw the rage when you thought Zechs was attacking Trowa. I never had that. You five are stronger than we were. It might make the difference, so there isn't another drawn-out war."  
  
Quatre frowned. "What do you mean?"  
  
"I preferred pleasant dreams to realities. I would never have asked to see my true form," he explained. Suddenly his entire body blurred, and when it became clear again, he was a different person. He was only slightly taller, but there were dark circles under both of his eyes, eyes that were bloodshot. He was thin - not just long like all of the mages, but emaciated. The wings were still there, but they barely glowed - instead, they hung down his back. They looked more like a fly's wings then something magical. Besides all of those obvious things, there was something lacking about him that had been there when he was in the other form. He looked dead.  
  
"So now you know," Gente said. "The truth was that it wasn't much of a sacrifice when we killed ourselves a thousand years ago. We were all more than half-dead, and sick at heart because of the years of war. There wasn't much left for us here, either. We'd destroyed my homeland in the wars. The others had about as much to go back to. So killing ourselves for the world seemed to be the next logical step."  
  
"How... how did this happen?" Quatre asked, finding his voice again.  
  
"The power, it always comes back to the power," Gente said, a small smile on his face. It did nothing to improve his looks. "We have an enormous amount of power - too much, actually. The human body just can't take that kind of stress. It takes enormous amounts of energy to control that sort of power, and that has a drain on your body. Towards the end of the war, we were eating a ton of food, we just couldn't get any energy because our bodies were so drained. We were just worn down. We did some pretty desperate things back then, to end the war, because we weren't going to last much longer. It was a war of attrition, and we were losing. We managed to drive them back to their own world, and then we threw what was left of our energy back into the shield."  
  
Quatre nodded. It made sense, he guessed. It had to be an amazing amount of power, but he could see it doing that. Look what using their powers did to normal mages. "Is it... is it going to happen to me?"  
  
Gente sighed. "I don't know. It really depends on how long this war is drawn out. We didn't start to show signs of the stress until the ninth year. It didn't get this bad until the very end - by then we were practically dragging ourselves out of our graves to fight and then collapsing again immediately afterwards. To this day I don't know how we managed to win, even if the victory was only partial. If the war ends earlier, faster this time, I don't think the strain will be too great. And, of course, assuming that you really defeat them, not just force them back like we did, you won't have to give your lives like we did, to build another shield. I really hope that doesn't happen - I've had a number of nightmares about this becoming a cycle, happening every thousand years." He grimaced. "There is a bit of bad news, though. It's no coincidence that I'm only an inch taller than you. From now on, your body will be devoting all of it's energy to containing the power. That means that it can't devote any energy to growing. I will be extremely surprised if any of you grow more than an inch or two."  
  
Quatre frowned at that news. He was the smallest of the five by far, and didn't relish the idea of being the runt for the rest of his life. Then he realized how ridiculous it was, that he was worrying about his size when he was about to fight in a battle against demons that wanted to take over his world. He laughed at the irony.  
  
Gente, following his thoughts, also smiled. "Yeah. Let's work on one problem at a time, huh? If it makes you feel better, you can always cast an illusion to look taller."  
  
"I'll keep that in mind," Quatre said. "Now, we'd better get started. You have more to teach me then how to look more imposing then I actually am."  
  
--------------------------------------------  
  
Duo gasped as the others disappeared. "What the hell? Where'd they go?" he asked the girl that the others had called Thanatos, who was the only one left.   
  
"They're still here, sorta," the girl said with a cocky smile. "We just moved to different planes. They're not really gone, neither are we. We'll meet up with them later."  
  
"That's very helpful," Duo remarked sarcastically.   
  
"You'll understand when I finish giving you everything I know," Thanatos said in what was probably supposed to be a comforting tone.   
  
"Great. How are you planning on doing that?"  
  
"Magic."  
  
"That's helpful," he remarked sarcastically.  
  
"It's easier not to try to explain now. Lets just say that I'm going to use magic to teach you how to use your magic, and once I do, you'll understand how I did it. It's a waste of time for me to explain something that you'll understand later anyway. Got it?"  
  
"Sure. Whatever." He turned his head aside and feigned boredom, waiting for her to do whatever it was that she was going to do. When several minutes passed with nothing happening, he finally gave up and turned back and saw that she was staring at him, a wistful expression on her face. "What?!"  
  
"It touched you too, didn't it?"  
  
There was something about her voice - almost but not quite breaking from the emotion she was hiding - that made him pause before he started yelling. He hated when people started getting all vague on him, but something told him that she wasn't just being mysterious for effect - that she wasn't being more specific because it was painful to talk about. He knew what that was like, so instead of yelling, he asked, "What?"  
  
"The power. I can see its mark on you. How did you discover it?"  
  
Duo bit off the automatic response, which was to mock her. "Why do you ask?"  
  
"I was just... curious, I suppose. Can you tell me?" Suddenly her face looked incredibly young and vulnerable, for all that she was his age.   
  
"I killed my best friend."  
  
"That's not bad."  
  
Duo's head snapped up. "What the hell are you talking about?!" he demanded angrily.  
  
"I'm sorry, that came out wrong. I mean, it could have been a lot worse."  
  
"How?"  
  
"You could have wiped out your entire clan. That's what I did," she said with a smile carefully calculated to hide the pain. He should know - he'd perfected his own version of that smile.   
  
He stared at her in horror as she shifted her grip on the huge scythe she carried, then raised it and casually swung it in front of her. A large strip of grass suddenly became eight or ten inches shorter. "Apparently, as soon as the demons opened a gateway to our world to invade it, the world responded to defend itself by giving the five of us our powers. The only problem was that it forgot to tell us. I was a mage, a fairly weak one at that, and I was playing a game with my older brother. He threw a pretend mage-bolt at me, and I... reacted. I just used my power, the way I always had, but I didn't realize that I had all this extra energy. And... I remember seeing his body drop to the ground like a rag doll. I thought at first that it was some sort of joke, but when I got over there, he wasn't breathing. I... I ran back to the camp to get help, but everyone there was dead, too. I sucked the life out of all of them in less than a second."  
  
Duo didn't say anything, knowing how much he hated it when people mouthed empty platitudes. He'd never thought of himself as lucky before, but she was right. It could have been a lot worse. Those stupid humans who'd run him out of town, the ones who blamed him for the plague - he could have done much worse to them, without ever realizing it. "When did you find out that you were responsible?" he asked.  
  
"Not for years, luckily," she said with a bitter laugh. "If I'd found out at the time, I probably would have killed myself, and then where would we be?" She eyed him thoughtfully. "Have you ever tried to kill yourself?"  
  
"Nah. I... I've wanted to die a few times, but I've never done anything about it. Too much of a coward. Run and hide rather than do something about it, that's me."  
  
"Sometimes it takes more courage to live."  
  
"Depends how you define living," he said sourly. There was silence for a minute, each lost in their own painful memories.  
  
"When?"  
  
"When what?"  
  
"When did you want to die?"  
  
"When I killed Solo."  
  
"Your friend?"  
  
"Friend, protector, brother, yeah, that was Solo."  
  
"Any other times?"  
  
"After the faeries."  
  
"Faeries? Oh, yes, you lived with them for a while, didn't you?"  
  
"How did you know that?" he asked, eyes narrowing suspiciously.  
  
"We kept an eye on you guys. We can't interact physically with your world, but we can watch, and we were very curious about the people we'd waited a thousand years for."  
  
"Just how long have you known about us?" he demanded.   
  
"You mean that you guys would be coming or that it was you in particular?" she asked with a cocky grin that he usually used to irritate Wufei or Heero. It was more than a little irritating to have it turned on him. "We've known there would be five to replace us when the time came from the moment we cast the spell. As for knowing it was you in particular - we've known the five of you since birth. We haven't been watching you constantly, just keeping an eye on you. That reminds me... why did you leave the faeries? None of us were paying enough attention, and the next thing we knew, you were back on the streets."  
  
"You missed quite a sight," he drawled, forcing himself not to think too hard about what had happened, or he might start crying, and he didn't do that anymore. "I killed them all."  
  
"You what?"  
  
"You wiped out your Clan, I wiped out the faeries that took me in. These things happen."  
  
"You didn't kill them," she declared immediately. "We could sense it whenever you used your powers, and you only did it once, with your friend. The minor stuff doesn't trigger our notice, and you certainly didn't use your power to kill an entire village. I would have sensed that."  
  
"I never said that I used my power to kill them," he protested, but inwardly he felt a hint of relief. He'd never been able to rid himself of the fear that somehow he'd drawn on his powers unconsciously and killed them without realizing it. It didn't make any sense, especially with what he remembered, but he didn't have a great track record when it came to using his power, so he'd always had the thought hanging around in the back of his mind... Now he could dismiss that, at least. Their deaths were still his fault, but at least he hadn't made the same mistake twice.  
  
"So what happened? I don't believe that you went around the village with a knife and slit their throats."  
  
"Of course not!" he snapped, a little ill at the image she'd just put in his mind. What was even worse was that it fit in so perfectly with his memories of what had happened there, so he could very easily picture gaping wounds in the necks of the scorched bodies he'd seen. Damn her, anyway. "Everyone who gets close to me dies. If you weren't dead already, I might be concerned. Then again, maybe not," he snapped.  
  
"Touché," she said quietly. Duo didn't care enough to ask her what the hell she was talking about. "But that doesn't answer my question. We may be Death, but that doesn't mean that we kill everyone we come into contact with, or get close to, or whatever. There's no curse attached to the power, except for the nature of the power itself."  
  
"Yeah, well that's easy to say when your friends aren't dropping like flies around you," Duo said shortly. He really didn't want to be discussing this.  
  
"There's something very wrong here," she said with a slight frown, and made a slight motion with her hand. A black circle appeared on the ground. It wasn't a shadow, or darker in color, it was simply black. He heard a faint voice in the back of his mind muttering something, and realized that she was casting some sort of spell. He closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the magic in the air around him, getting a taste of the distinct flavor. It was unlike any magic he'd ever felt before - there was so much power in it, and the fact that he got the general feeling that it was natural, effortless, at least for her.   
  
"What did you do?" he asked in a whisper. "What sort of spell is that?"  
  
"Spyer," she said unhelpfully, frowning at the black circle. He could see something swirling around inside now. An image of a forest was forming, but very slowly.  
  
"What?"  
  
"Sorry," she said without looking at him. "Spy spell. One of a number of spells we have to spy on our enemies. This one allows me to look back through time."  
  
"Through time? That could be handy."  
  
She shrugged, eyes still focused on the black circle. "It has it's uses. Sometimes. Actually, it can be kind of frustrating to see events happening and know you can't do anything to stop them, because it's already happened. But any information is power, so we use all the spells we know."  
  
"What are you doing now?" he asked, then his breath caught in his throat as he recognized the forest in the circle. It was his forest, the faeries forest, his home for years. He knew every tree by name, knew every plant and stream as well as he knew his own hand. He'd been told that most humans could barely tell one forest from another, much less one tree from another, but he had trouble believing it. How couldn't they see the difference?   
  
"I'm going to find out what really happened to the faeries."  
  
Duo gasped. "Why?"  
  
"Because something that could get through their shields and kill them all is too powerful to leave out there, unknown. You may think that you're cursed - which I doubt, but even a curse has to act through a medium. They didn't just drop dead, did they?"  
  
He didn't respond. It was too painful to think about.  
  
"Did they?" her voice struck at him like a whip, and before he realized what he was doing, he answered.  
  
"No! It was burned. Everything was burned. The bodies..." he cut himself off, and felt anger rising inside of him. "What did you do?!" he demanded. "I never talk about it..." She'd done something to make him talk, spelled him to do it. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been this angry.   
  
"We can debate the ends and the means5 later. You may need this information. Or did you want to let more of your friends die because you're afraid to look now?"  
  
If it was possible, her words made Duo even more angry, but he reined it in as images of his clan appeared in the circle. His breath caught in his throat - he could never have imagined that seeing them again would be so painful. They were bustling around the village, playing their games or doing their chores, the way he'd seen them doing a hundred times before.   
  
Suddenly every one of them froze at exactly the same instant, as the forest called out a warning to them. This was another thing he didn't understand - the forest should have given them warning in plenty of time to at least run and hide. Not one of them had escaped the carnage, and all the bodies had been lying in the village. He would at least have expected them to try hiding in the forest. "I don't want to see this," he muttered. "I... I can't." He desperately wanted to look away, but he couldn't.  
  
"You'll see much worse before this is over," Thanatos murmured.   
  
Duo searched his mind for some sort of retort, but suddenly the image changed and all thought fled him. The picture shimmered once, and he stared, horrified because he knew what it meant. "That was the shields going. Somehow they tricked an elder into inviting one of them in, and then shattered them from the inside. I... I felt it, inside my head. It knocked me unconscious."  
  
Thanatos looked at him. "That's not a normal reaction for magic like that. You must have somehow linked yourself - and your power - to the shields. There's no other explanation for you having a physical reaction like that."  
  
"I didn't mean to."  
  
"Well, I didn't mean to slaughter my Clan, but we're not always in complete control of our powers," she replied bitterly. "It doesn't matter. If anything, the shields would have stayed up a little longer because of it. And I doubt that you could have done anything to stop something that could kill an entire faery clan, including the elders, at least not then."  
  
Duo didn't answer. His eyes were fixed on the image as the faeries stood absolutely still. He knew from experience that they were talking with the trees, even if he couldn't hear it in this recreation. Suddenly they all started running away in every direction, but when they reached the edge of the clearing that marked the end of the village, a wall of black fire sprouted up in front of them, forming a circle around the village, trapping them there. So that's why they didn't scatter, he thought numbly, in the part of his mind that wasn't shrieking in anguish as he saw several of his friends fling themselves at the fire, obviously trying to get through it. They'd done that sort of thing before, flinging themselves through flames too quickly to be badly burned, but this time something went horribly wrong. It was as if the wall of fire was actually solid. The faeries who tried to jump through it either bounced off or were caught in the flames. He could see them screaming as they were burned alive. Don't think, he told himself. If he thought about this, he'd go crazy.  
  
Then something... several somethings, actually, walked through the wall of flame. Duo gasped, and heard Thanatos cursing. "The demons who chased us!" he gasped. "But... it was years ago!" he turned accusing eyes on his companion as she stared at the image. After a few seconds, she spat out a word he didn't recognize and the black circle disappeared. "How did this happen?!"  
  
"We underestimated them," she growled, and his temper flared.  
  
"What?! You mean they all died because you made a mistake?!"  
  
"We thought that they wouldn't be able to identify you until you got your powers. Somehow they managed to open a temporary portal to this world and used it to attack you."  
  
"Me?!" the word came out in a very undignified squeak. It was followed by a realization, this one crushing. "Then they did die because of me. The demons were looking for me, they were trying to kill me, and if I hadn't been there, they'd still be alive." It hurt more than he wanted to think about to have all of his suspicions born out in such a manner.   
  
"It had to be this way," Thanatos said softly.  
  
"What? I had to be a murderer?" he demanded angrily, spinning around to face her, fists clenched.  
  
"Goddess, no!" she shouted back, eyes flashing angrily. "Don't you understand? They saved your life!"  
  
"And died for it!" he responded bitterly. "I killed them, just as much as you killed your Clan," he added, knowing it would hurt her.   
  
Her eyes darkened for a second. "You're trying to hurt me, distract me," she said, glaring at him through narrowed eyes. "It won't work. You don't think that our enemies didn't try that method more than once during the war? And they'll try it on you, too, if you don't learn to live with the fact that people die in wars."  
  
"You're not supposed to kill your allies, though," he said sarcastically. "They would have been better off if they'd never found me."  
  
"If they hadn't found you, you would have died."  
  
"Better one than many."  
  
"Goddess, you really don't understand, don't you?" she asked. "You're the important one. In fact, for all we care, you and the other four are the only ones who matter in the entire world. Your elders knew it. They sacrificed themselves for you, because they knew how important you were. You don't think that they couldn't look ahead, that they didn't know what was coming? Give them more credit than that. If you had died then, the entire world would die now."  
  
"They... they knew what was coming?" he asked falteringly.  
  
"They did. And they chose to protect you, for the good of the entire world. Now what are you going to do with the life they gave you? You owe them."  
  
Duo knew what she wanted - she wanted him to fight for her cause, but there was only one thought in his mind right then - revenge. It made him ashamed, knowing that wasn't what his friends had died for, but he couldn't help it. All he wanted was to hurt those who had hurt his friends.   
  
"You can have both, you know," Thanatos said quietly.  
  
"Stop reading my mind."  
  
"It's true though. You can avenge them and protect the world at the same time. The means to both goals are the same. Take your place along with the others and defend this world. You'll get plenty of opportunity to kill the demons, as you call them, and be fulfilling the destiny they died to preserve at the same time."  
  
For several minutes Duo stared into the distance, remembering the scenes of death that were permanently imprinted in his mind. First Solo, and then many of them, from his time with the faeries. There were more, people he'd killed with his own hands when they tried to hurt him, or tried to hurt some innocent orphan kids as he'd roamed from village to village. Never did anything to help anyone beyond a few random killings and a few gifts of extra money. Didn't want to get attached to anyone, because everyone he ever loved ended up dead. Sure it was lonely, but it was much safer that way.   
  
He'd thought that he was Death, and now he'd found out that he was right. He'd thought that anyone who got close to him would die, and now he knew that was true as well, but he also knew that there was a reason for it. He could end it now, make sure that he didn't kill anyone else just by knowing them. Maybe Death would leave him alone if he did this last thing.  
  
"Are you going to teach me or not?"  
  
--------------------------------------------  
  
Trowa blinked in surprise as the others disappeared, but when his companion didn't show any alarm, he decided it must have been expected and didn't comment. Instead, he turned to the other man and said, "You can drop the illusion now."  
  
The illusion of a young man his own age shimmered and then disappeared to be replaced by the reality - a man almost a dozen years older than himself, haggard and scarred. He looked half-dead already. He sighed. "I knew you'd see through the illusion, but Gente thought that it would be better to break it to you gently."  
  
"We're going to look like that?" Trowa asked. It was easy to picture himself that way, he felt half-dead most of the time, but the thought of seeing his Quatre in that condition hurt. He'd seen through the illusions the others wore in a matter of seconds. Did that mean that the others hadn't seen through them? Why was he different?  
  
"It is one possibility. We didn't start to look like this for years. If your war is shorter than ours was, you may have a long life in front of you."  
  
Trowa nodded, absorbing the information. "Why did I see through the illusions when the others didn't?"  
  
"We don't do so well at seeing things other than reality, it goes against our power," Gael said with a hint of a smile. "It comes in handy in battle sometimes, but... well, you always see the truth. Exactly as it is - you're not allowed any personal illusions. A little different then your Quatre."  
  
"I've never had any illusions."  
  
Gael nodded his head slightly in response to that comment, then fell silent. The two of them stood in comfortable silence together for several minutes, and Trowa found himself more comfortable with this stranger then he'd ever been with anyone, except Quatre.   
  
"It makes sense. We were chosen for the same personal characteristics - we're almost one person. Almost," Gael responded to his thoughts.   
  
"So what now?"  
  
"I'm going to use magic to give you all of my knowledge about how our magic works, about what we can do with it, what limitations we have. You'll also be getting a good number of my memories of the war, so you'll know what sort of tricks they pulled on us. Maybe you won't be tricked by the same things. It could save lives," he said bleakly.   
  
Trowa nodded. "Will it take long?"  
  
"Time has no meaning here. You're going to exit the crystal less than a second after you entered it. You're not really in it, of course."  
  
"Mm."  
  
"Are you ready to begin?"  
  
Trowa shrugged, then nodded his head slightly.  
  
"It might be better if you sat down. This may take some time..." he trailed off, remembering his previous comment. "Well, it will seem to take some time."  
  
Trowa nodded again and seated himself. Gael sat on the ground facing him. "There's one thing I want to tell you about before I give you my memories. You have to be very, very careful not to let your power control you, because it will try. You have to work to keep from drawing away from people, and even more dangerous, to stop from devoting all your time to protecting Nature. The power can't make decisions, it doesn't realize that there are more important things than protecting one little bit of forest. You have to conserve your energy for the actual battles. Once I lost control totally... well, you'll see. Just be very careful. Now relax. This won't hurt. Much."   
  
He raised his hands to Trowa's forehead, and everything went black.  
  
-----------------------------------------------  
  
Heero blinked as the others disappeared, and his hand went to the sword at his hip.   
  
"Don't bother," said the boy who looked like he came from the same land as Wufei. He was the only one who hadn't disappeared. "They aren't being harmed, we just wanted some privacy for the transfer."  
  
"Transfer?" Heero growled.  
  
"I'm going to give you all my knowledge about how to use your magic, and how to effectively fight the invaders." The boy crossed his arms across his chest and gazed dispassionately at Heero. He walked in a slow circle around him, looking him over like he was a piece of meat. "You're good enough," he finally said with a frown. "But this has got to be the first time in the history of the universe that the person to have the power of Life was an assassin. You're not going to be doing that anymore."  
  
Heero decided right then that he was not going to let some boy he'd never met, or some power that he'd never asked for dictate his life.   
  
"You don't have a choice. The power won't let you kill unnecessarily. If you don't believe me, try going back to killing people for money and see what happens. You'll freeze. But if it makes you feel better, you'll have plenty of people to kill in the upcoming years." Heero glared at him, trying to shield his own thoughts from his intrusive companion. Stay out of my mind, he growled. Vida's lips twitched in what might be considered a smile by some, if they were very generous and not to specific with the definition of a smile. "You need to relax. I was like you before - never showed anything, even if I wasn't as dead on the inside as I pretended. It's not worth it - inefficient, if you can believe that. I spent too much energy suppressing my emotions and pretending that I didn't have them. By the end of the war I didn't have the energy to keep it up. And... and Thanatos would never let me get away with pretending I didn't care." There was a hint of pain in his eyes now, and happiness as well.  
  
"Hn."  
  
"Well, you'll see. I don't think your Duo will let you get away with it anymore than... than Thanatos would."  
  
Heero's eyes widened despite his attempt at self-control. "Duo? That... That baka? What are you talking about?!" he demanded.  
  
The sort-of-smile Vida wore blossomed into a full-fledged smile. "Yeah, I know, we're always the last to know, but you're acting just the way I did before Thanatos jumped me. The others saw it too, at the time."  
  
Heero only had one word for him. "No."  
  
Vida shrugged. "You'll see. I give it less than a month before he proves you wrong, and trust me, you'll be glad he proved you wrong."  
  
Heero glared at him, trying very hard not to think of the braided baka, of his smile, of the weird twinkle in his eye that shouldn't have been there, not after all the death he'd seen. He tried very hard not to think about Duo, because if he did, Vida would read his mind, and then... He swore under his breath as a smug smirk appeared on Vida's face. He glared at him some more.  
  
"You'll see," Vida said with a shake of his head. "Is there anything you want to know before I start?" As he spoke, his wings extended out behind him, almost as if he was stretching.   
  
Heero continued to glare at him.  
  
Vida shrugged. "Then lets do this," he said, all signs of emotion draining from his face until it was as emotionless as Heero's. Suddenly he looked very capable, although not quite as deadly as Heero. He took several steps closer and put both of his hands on Heero's head. "This is going to hurt..."  
  
-----------------------------------------------------  
  
Wufei grunted in surprise as the others all disappeared, all except that infuriating woman who claimed to be him in a past life. He drew his sword and held it in front of him uncertainly. He would never have been a weak woman in a past life, and he wanted to kill this creature who dared to suggest that he would have, but at the same time, his honor would not allow him to attack an opponent weaker than himself, especially a woman.   
  
"Are you planning on attacking me with that?" she asked scornfully. "Or were you just going to stand there and look frustrated?" Sky-blue eyes flashed as she glared at him. Then the glare turned into a cruel smile. "Or are you afraid that I'll beat you if you ever do get up the guts to attack me?"  
  
"Kisama!" he exclaimed, sheathing his weapon in disgust. "I won't disgrace myself by fighting a woman."  
  
"Suit yourself," she said, drawing her own sword. "That attitude of yours is the first thing we have to get rid of."   
  
"What are you doing, onna?!" he demanded as she approached him, the weapon held before her. She looked very comfortable and competent with it, but then, all she'd done was threaten him. Threats were no judge of a warrior's true strength.   
  
"I should think even a chauvinist like you would get this - I'm attacking you. Defend yourself."  
  
"You're insane," he accused, drawing his own sword to defend himself as she swung her blade at his head. He ducked under the attack, and then raised his own sword to block the follow-up strike that came a second later.   
  
"Not particularly. No more than any of the others," she replied evenly, attacking again. What was truly disturbing was that she was able to keep up a conversation like this as she fought. Well, the real problem was that she wasn't out of breath as she spoke - not at all. It was almost as if this was no effort for her.  
  
"It isn't," she said.  
  
"What?" he growled.  
  
"It isn't much of an effort for me," she responded, jumping back to avoid a strike of his own, then instantly jumping forward again. Her breathing continued to be even and calm, as he began to breath harder from the exertion.  
  
"Stay out of my mind!" he grunted in between his breaths. Then, "You're not human!"  
  
"I'm as human as you are," she retorted, still breathing evenly. "Or at least you will be." Their swords met with the clash of steel on steel, and even generated a few sparks from the friction of the blades against each other. Suddenly she twisted her wrists, and his sword flew out of his hand as his grip failed. He stared at the end of her sword and swallowed once. He raised his eyes to meet hers. He would not dishonor himself further by closing his eyes like a child. He would face his death like a warrior.  
  
"Do it."  
  
She stared at him as if he was some incomprehensible object, and then shook her head. She took a step back and sheathed her sword, letting it rest between her fire-wings. "I was just making a point. I'm not going to kill you. I may not like you very much, but you are necessary for the survival of this world. All I can do is try to beat some sense into your head. Just because an opponent is female doesn't mean they're not dangerous. You'll probably have some females against you, and if you underestimate them the way you underestimated me, it's going to cost you a lot."  
  
"You... onna!" he shouted angrily, reverting back to his native tongue in his frustration.  
  
She raised an eyebrow. "How observant. Are you ready to accept my knowledge yet, or do you want to go at it again?"  
  
"What could a woman teach me?" he asked scornfully, picking up his own sword and sheathing it.   
  
"Well, I could teach you to do this," she suggested wickedly, and then held up a hand. His eyes widened as the magic in the air around her literally began to dance as she somehow disrupted the patterns without destroying them. He'd never seen anything like that before, not ever.  
  
"That's..."  
  
"My power. Your power. Our power. And I have to show you how to fully utilize it, no matter how much you dislike me, but I can't do that if you close your mind to me. You have to open your mind in order to receive the information. So? Are you ready to let me in, to accept what I can teach you? Or do you need me to beat you up a little more? In the interest of honesty, I'll tell you that you don't have a chance against me. I know how to use my power to augment my strength while fighting. You don't, and until you learn, you can't beat me. So are you ready to learn?"  
  
Wufei glared at her. She was a warrior, he couldn't deny it, but something within him rebelled at the idea of submitting to the teaching of a woman, no matter how skilled. It just didn't seem right.  
  
"Maybe if you stop thinking of me as a woman, it will be easier," she suggested. "I'm not really a woman, you know. I've been dead for a thousand years. I'm a ghost."  
  
"You were a woman."  
  
"Woman is just a name," she pointed out.   
  
"You've given me no other for you," he returned.   
  
She closed her eyes and sighed. "Then... you can call me... you might as well call me Magic."  
  
"That's not a name," he said, disgusted that she thought so little of him that she wouldn't even give her real name to him.  
  
"No, it's not, but it's who I am now. There's very little left of me but my powers."  
  
"What does that mean?" he demanded. "At least give me your true name! It is dishonorable to do less!"  
  
"If I remembered it, I'd be happy to tell you!" she snapped angrily.  
  
"You... you don't remember?" he asked, horrified. His name was such a big part of his identity - losing it would be like losing a part of himself, a part vital to his survival.  
  
"We sent most of our memories and all of our power into the shield when we killed ourselves," she said soberly. "But not everything made the transfer properly, I don't know why. Perhaps it's because so many of our memories were tied up in our powers that when the spell started to fail, the memories did too. We've existed so long simply for our power that we've become little more than those powers. Especially in the last hundred years, we've been forgetting things. Names, places, people... I remember the exact date that I killed my first demon, but my mother's face... it's a blur, it has been for years." There was an emptiness in her eyes now, something that nothing could fill. "We've all lost different things, different amounts. Gente... or the man we call Gente remembers the most, but our own names were some of the first things to go. I know, in life, I had a relationship with Gael, but I can't remember it. I can't even remember his true name. We hope, when we pass on, it will come back, but there's no guarantee."  
  
"I'm sorry," he murmured, unable to come up with any better way to express his feelings over the horror of what had happened to her, to all of them.  
  
"We survive. We always do. We have no choice," she said simply. "Now, are you ready to take on this burden yourself, knowing what possible future awaits?"  
  
The thought of losing his identity was the most horrible thing that Wufei could think of, but no member of the Dragon Clan would ever be called a coward. He raised his chin and stared evenly at her. "Do what you must."  
  
----------------------------------------------  
  
Quatre didn't gasp as the others all reappeared - why should he, he'd cast the spell that brought them back. He looked around and saw that the others were changed - just as he was. The wings that had been on their predecessors were now on his group, and there was a faint glimmer in the air around each of them. At the same time, their predecessors had lost their wings and the glow, and were now practically transparent, lifeless, listless. They'd given the last of their power for this last transfer of power and information, now there was practically nothing left of them. The only thing keeping them here was their own willpower.   
  
:Ready?: Quatre asked the others, and felt their agreement. This pocket of existence was getting ready to collapse, anyway, and they'd be a lot better off if their consciousnesses weren't in it when it did. He turned to look at Gente, then let his gaze drift over the others. "Thank you all very much."  
  
"End this. Please," Gente said quietly, and the others nodded agreement. "We won't be able to contact you again, but we'll be watching."  
  
Quatre nodded, smiling sadly as Vida moved next to Thanatos, linking hands while Gael and the other girl did the same. Gente stood by, also watching, a glowing smile on his face. "Are we ready?" he asked quietly.  
  
"Ready?" Thanatos asked. "I've been waiting for this for centuries!" And with this, she planted a very enthusiastic kiss on Vida's lips. Gael did the same to the other girl.  
  
Gente's smile somehow broadened. "Good-bye," he murmured, and their bodies faded away. As soon as they were completely gone, Quatre automatically threw his consciousness back into his body, trusting the others to do the same as the universe fell apart.  
  
  
  
  
Author's notes: Well, this one was not as much fun to write, but there were things that had to be said. Now I can get back to the action stuff. There were a couple of weird/random references here, so I marked them.  
1. Thanatos is Greek for death  
2. Gente is Spanish for people  
3. Gael is a male version of Gaea, the spirit of the earth  
4. Vida is Spanish for life  
5. this little quote is paraphrased from one of my favorite books, Xenocide, by Orson Scott Card. It's part of the Ender's Game series, and I recommend that anyone who likes science fiction read it.  
  



	8. Part 7

Zechs watched the five of them walk up the Crystal, place their hands on it's surface - he shuddered at the very thought of what he'd feel if he tried that - and then there was a brilliant flash of light. When his eyes cleared, the five of them were still standing there in the exact same position they'd been, but there were now huge wings protruding from each of their backs. In his shock it took him several seconds to realize that the feeling of aversion that had him pressed up against the wall in an attempt to get away from it was gone. For the first time in his memory, the Crystal was nothing more than a large chunk of crystal, a stone capable of holding spells and no more.   
  
Carefully avoiding Heero's huge white wings, Zechs stepped up to the crystal and lay a hand on it's surface. If he had tried this earlier (if he'd been able to try it) it would have killed him. Now he felt... nothing, no power, no intelligence, nothing.  
  
"They're gone," Quatre said quietly, removing his hands. He twisted his head to look at the glowing wings that rose up behind him. "I wasn't sure if the wings actually existed, or if they were just a symbol of the transference of power. I guess they actually are physical. We're going to have to hide them." He turned his faced forward again, a determined look on his face. Behind him, the wings came down and flattened themselves against his back and legs. For a moment there was a bright shimmer of light all around him, then the wings were... absorbed into his back. A soft sound, a cross between a gasp and a hiss, escaped his lips, and then there was silence as the light died down and Quatre stood there, outwardly unchanged from when he'd walked into the room a few moments ago.   
  
A few moments to him, perhaps, but Zechs could see that it had obviously been a lot longer for them. It was then that Quatre's comment hit him. "Who's gone?" he asked, feeling as if he'd missed something. A lot of somethings.  
  
"The... ones who came before us. They've passed on, and the shield is breaking down. It will fall within a year, maybe less." The words were spoken calmly, with no hint of emotion or fear. Quatre was speaking about the attack, about the possible end of the world in the same tone he'd use to discuss the weather during a tea party. "They gave us their powers, and their memories. We are as prepared as we can be for such things," Quatre continued as the others withdrew their wings into their bodies. "I may need the assistance of the mages alive today when the enemy comes. Until then we can do nothing but wait and practice."   
  
------------------------------------  
  
Treize resisted the urge to glare at the report in front of him. He'd thought that once he knew where they were, once they were pinned down, it was only a matter of time until he had them again. But they'd been hiding in her palace for over two months now, with no sign that they ever intended to leave. He knew they would have to, eventually, but he wanted them before the attack came! If he didn't have them in his power by then, he'd be left on the sidelines.   
  
He'd asked Une to do a mage-scan of the palace, and the report of that scan was on his desk. It was that report that had made him so angry. According to Une, there were very high amounts of magical energy being used inside the castle. Very high. Incredibly high. As Une had put it, any one of the emissions she was sensing was more powerful than the combined magic power of every mage he'd ever seen. Somehow they'd learned to tap their true potential, and now they were wasting it. A horrible thought occurred to him - that they might not even be *using* their power. What Une could be seeing could just be them walking around the palace, eating and sleeping and breathing. They probably weren't even at full potential yet. The thought was maddening.  
  
It wasn't just the five, either. Treize was discovering that he never seemed to understand the prophecies until it was too late. He'd realized just *after* they escaped that he had held the five as he deduced their real names from the names the prophets gave them. Now that they were out of reach, he'd figured out who the Peaceful Girl and the Disinherited were, again too late to position his men to catch them. The Peaceful girl was obviously Queen Relena, who was definitely still a child and seemed intent on continuing her family's pacifist ways. The Disinherited was even more obvious, and thus more frustrating for him, since he'd practically given Milliardo the title, by driving him out of his position, his inheritance. If he'd been able to figure out either one of them, he would have put far more of his troops in Sank, and he would have had them by now.  
  
He still didn't know who the Faithful Followers were, nor the Seeker. Some of the Seeker's followers were also appearing in the prophecies, the Devoted, and the Fighter, whoever they were. Treize was beginning to think that this was some sort of huge joke being played on him by the Fates.   
  
He thought about it for several minutes, then thought he could find a way to force their hands. Calling for a page, he began to mentally compose a letter to Lord Winner, asking him to send his daughters (only some of them - gods, there were quite a few!) on a diplomatic mission to Sank. When Quatre saw his family... well, at best it would draw him out into the open, at worst it would cause him pain, be a distraction.   
  
As he waited for the page to arrive, he looked through another prophecy, another new one. Perhaps this one would have the answers he sought.  
  
------------------------------------  
  
"All right, lets try this again," Quatre said for the eighth time that afternoon, hanging onto his temper with his fingernails. "We need to be able to combine our powers, not just use them at the same time, and we can't leave the palace until we succeed!" There was no guarantee after they left the palace that they'd be able to find a place where it was safe to practice like this. At least here, they could get Relena to order them not to be disturbed, and Zechs could shield them if anything went terribly wrong.   
  
Since they emerged (figuratively) from the crystal, they'd been going through the memories that their predecessors had given them, trying out their various skills one by one. They'd discovered that there was a very large step between having the memories of using their powers, and actually being able to use those powers themselves. It was like having a very detailed instruction manual, but they still had to figure it out on their own, which was usually not as easy as it sounded.   
  
They'd spent all morning and the three hours since lunch trying to figure out one of their predecessors' more difficult tricks - literally combining their power. It was one thing to fight together - that was easy - but to actually combine their powers so that it was being controlled, not by five different minds, but a sort of amalgamation of all. And it wasn't working.  
  
They were all too different, too stubborn, too individual, himself included, Quatre thought moodily. They were all very strong individuals, and rejected the idea of giving that up to a combined consciousness, even if they did trust each other, mostly. They'd been trying for hours now, but one or another would shudder and pull away, bringing all the massed power down on the head of whoever had the unfortunate luck to be in the focus at that instant. More often then not, it was Quatre. For some reason, the others trusted him more than each other, so most of the time, when they could get themselves to give themselves over to the merge, he ended up the focus. There was only so many times that enough energy to flatten half of the Sank kingdom could come crashing down on your head before it gave you a headache, no matter who you were. Quatre felt like he'd stuck his brain out in a sandstorm to have it scoured.   
  
"We almost had it that time," Duo said, rubbing his head wearily, and Quatre barely managed to keep himself from snarling at Duo. It was Duo who'd dropped out last time, and he'd only been the focus once or twice. Quatre was approaching three dozen times. "Sorry, guys," he apologized with a sheepish grin, looking at Quatre. "I lost my concentration."  
  
Well, that was a little bit of improvement, maybe. At least he wasn't pulling out because he was afraid of being hurt anymore. That had been the problem for the longest time. Apparently he had a very deep-buried fear that anyone he reached out to would be taken away, killed, and would consequently hurt him again. It was something Quatre could understand (intellectually, at least), but he wished that Duo had mentioned this fact before he brought the link crashing down on Quatre's head a dozen times or more. By the time he finally admitted it, Quatre was in no mood to help him get it out of his system.   
  
Surprisingly enough, it was Heero who took Duo aside and talked (or let Duo talk) until Duo was willing to try again. That on it's own had taken almost an hour. Quatre was very curious as to what Heero had said, at the sudden interest he was showing in Duo, but didn't feel that it was right for him to pry.  
  
At least, he'd been curious about it six hours ago, before the stupid link was dropped on his head a dozen more times. The fact that it had been his own fault at least three of those times wasn't helping.   
  
"Maybe we should take a break," Quatre suggested with the most politeness he could manage. "We're all getting tired..." The last three times it had collapsed, not because of a personality problem, but because they were too tired to focus properly. "Maybe if we rest for an hour or two we'll be able to focus better, and get it then." Maybe two hours would be enough for his head to stop throbbing. He had learned, to his dismay, that magic healing did nothing for magic-induced headaches, usually caused from backlash or overuse of powers. Right now he had a bad case of both.  
  
"No, can we try it one more time, please?" Duo asked, turning those huge blue-violet eyes on Quatre. Even by the standards of a mage, his eyes were very large. "I'm sure we can get it this time. If we don't get it that time, we can quit until tomorrow, kay?" He had his most hopeful expression on his face, but it was his comment that caught Quatre's attention.  
  
Tomorrow? Quatre turned from where he'd been sitting in the middle of one of Relena's gardens and looked over the edge of the walls of the castle, where the setting sun was just barely visible, a mere slit above the wall. I guess we've been at this longer than I thought, he thought, feeling a little stupid. Maybe if the imps in his skull would stop banging their sledgehammers he could concentrate on something...  
  
"All right," he agreed with a weary sigh, not so much because of Duo's pleading eyes as because of the fact that he didn't have the energy to argue right now. "Let's do it. One more time," he said without any real hope that it would work. Contrary to popular belief, he did get grumpy from time to time, and he did have a temper, he just took longer to get to both than his companions, and when he reached that point, he usually hid it under a polite front.   
  
Sometimes he was astonished by their... well, naiveté was not the word he'd use to describe any of them, ever, but it was the first word that came to mind. They'd all lived such a rough existence that with the possible exception of Wufei, they didn't understand that just because a person continued to smile and act as if they cared didn't mean that they weren't thinking, that they were weak and full of emotion. Quatre had grown up among people who would smile at each other over tea and chat while arranging each others' assassinations. It was one of the reasons he was glad to be out of the line of succession - if he'd still been at home, he would be dealing with those people every day, and the attacks would become more and more cruel (verbal attacks) or deadly (physical attacks) as he approached his majority.  
  
His mind was drifting, a sure sign that he was exhausted. Quatre reminded himself that although he was polite, it wasn't because of a hidden agenda. Hypocrisy always drove him crazy (it always had), so he was probably the only diplomat they'd ever meet who really did show what he was thinking (most of the time), and whose emotions were genuine. Quatre had promised himself when he was very young that he would never allow himself to become one of those hypocritical bastards his father cursed about...  
  
His mind was drifting again. The spell. They were all looking at him to start it again. With difficulty, he pushed himself into the half-trance necessary for the spell. Then he quietly gathered his energy and launched it out of his body, holding it ready. He was, as usual, the focus. The others would have to match their energies to his, and to each others, while he held the entire mess together. And, when it collapsed (as he was almost certain it would) it would come crashing down on him. Again. He barely managed to catch that thought and shove it back into the depths of his mind. If there was one thing he knew about magic of this level, it was that thinking really did make it happen. If he thought that it wouldn't work, that would screw up the link before the others even started.  
  
He 'watched' with his eyes closed as Trowa threw his energy out of body, merging it with Quatre's almost effortlessly. Even though he'd seen it dozens of times today, it still made Quatre smile to see how willingly Trowa surrendered his privacy to Quatre. It was a sign of trust, a large one, and Quatre understood that. Trowa still had trouble merging with the others. Wufei came up next, merging first with Quatre, then, much more slowly, with Trowa. Quatre continued to watch. His part at this juncture was mostly passive - it was up to the others to come, and all he had to do was hold the focus and keep his mind open enough for the meld.   
  
Next Heero came. Quatre didn't know why they chose this order - they'd been playing around with it all day, switching in and out. That was how they'd ended up with other people being the focus the few times that had happened - none of them knew exactly how this worked (neither had their predecessors), so they didn't know the best way to make it work. But the few times that the others had tried to be the focus, they couldn't get more than one, maybe two others in before the whole thing collapsed. Apparently Quatre was the only one who could hold the focus. Before he was so tired, he'd wondered why that was, if it was him personally, or something having to do with his power. He suspected the first, because Gente hadn't held the focus most of the time, for the other group. That made him wonder what he'd done to be so lucky.   
  
Heero somehow managed to merge with them with few problems, although it took a very long time. By then, Quatre was beginning to really feel the merge. He could see how worried Trowa was - about him. There was a small rock digging into Wufei's right thigh. Heero was focused on 'the mission' with the same intensity that he gave every task he set out to accomplish, but there was a small part of his mind that was looking at something else. Someone else. Duo.   
  
Quatre realized what he was looking at, and hastily pulled as far back into himself as he could without breaking the merge. It was one thing to be experiencing what the others' bodies were feeling, quite another thing to look into the most intimate depths of someone's mind. They had to have some sort of privacy, or else they'd never be able to maintain this. Hence the reason for his hasty retreat, to say nothing of how uncomfortable he felt at finding himself intruding like that.   
  
One of the first things they'd discovered when they came back and started experimenting was that Quatre's mental strength, in terms of mind reading and *mind control*, far exceeded any of the others. Despite all of their powers, he could reach into their minds and look at their thoughts at will, and even take over their bodies, although that was more of an effort. It was the sort of power that people like Treize Khushrenada would love to have - he could control thousands with his power, and if he did it right, they'd never even realize they were being controlled. Quatre was not happy about that.  
  
Heero was still the most outwardly powerful. He'd entertained himself for a few days by practicing throwing those energy-balls of his at some of the older, falling-down parts of Relena's palace that she said she was planning on having torn down in the spring anyway. By the time he'd finished, she didn't need to have that area torn down in the spring, she could just start rebuilding. It also had the added benefit of making Relena rather... uncomfortable around Heero, which meant that she stopped following him around, or at least not as much as before.  
  
Duo could cast illusions better than Quatre, sometimes they were even solid to the touch. Quatre wasn't sure who was more surprised by this, himself or Duo. Duo had immediately decided that he liked that power, and started a campaign to (in his words) 'get a rise out of Heero.' Most often this campaign took the form of rather crude practical jokes. Heero took this in stride, mostly, until Duo created a *very* realistic illusion of someone sneaking into Heero's room while Heero was asleep. Heero vaporized most of the contents of the room while he was still clawing his way out of sleep, and just barely managed to avoid killing an old servant who happened to be outside his door at the time. He only avoided that because he sensed him at the last moment and threw up a shield around him, so the destructive energy didn't touch him, although Heero took care of most of the decorations in the hall, too. After that Duo toned down his tricks *a lot*. It might have had something to do with the 'discussions' he had with Heero, Trowa, and Wufei. In that order. After that line-up, Quatre didn't feel the need to put his two cents in. In any case, Duo kept his tricks to verbal, mostly, after that. And maybe he did succeed in getting through to Heero, a little. Quatre had seen them talking (well, Duo talking) more than once, off in some dusty corner where they thought no one could find them.  
  
Trowa had become... aware. There was no better way to put it. Duo's illusions, no matter how skillfully they were constructed, never fooled Trowa. He'd confessed to Quatre that he always knew where the others were and what they were doing, and that he was feeling other things, farther out, deep into the Earth. And he was having... well, they seemed like nightmares, but they both thought that it was a lot more than that. Something closer to prophetic visions, although they both hesitated to label the... occurrences as such, because he wasn't seeing pleasant things, most of the time. Quatre didn't know what to do, and was ashamed of himself, because the very rational, very pragmatic part of himself that he didn't like to admit was there was moving forward a full speed, figuring out the various ways that he could use the information Trowa now had. They needed all the information they could find, from any source... even if it was causing his love distress.   
  
He wasn't sure how he felt about that. He loved being with Trowa, and for him (so far at least) just sitting with him and talking (or not) was more than enough. He knew that Trowa felt the same way, but this whole thing with the prophetic dreams was bothering both of them, Trowa because of what he saw, and Quatre because of what he saw in Trowa, and in himself... but they had to win.  
  
Wufei was now practicing spells of such intricacy that if he were to try casting them, Quatre couldn't even imagine where to begin, much less how Wufei was actually doing it. He was making the spelled-mirror Treize had look like child's play, and that was the most complicated spell Quatre had ever seen, before all this started. He could do some pretty complicated spells himself, but nothing on the level that Wufei was doing with considerable ease.   
  
Quatre desperately pulled his attention back to the spell as his control began to slip as his mind wandered. He braced himself as he 'saw' Duo gather up his energy, and barely managed not to flinch as Duo threw it at their group. He waited for the shattering of concentration, the brilliant flash of light and then the pain as all of their combined power lashed back at him. He felt Duo's consciousness join them... then came the expected flash of light... then... a brilliant glow all around them as Duo's power meshed perfectly with their own.   
  
Quatre's physical body stiffened as the rush of energy hit him, and he was acutely aware of the others doing the same. Then there was calm, and incredible power at his disposal, more than he could ever have imagined. No, not at his disposal, at their disposal, because he was now fully in the bond. It had just come out as 'him' because he was so closely linked with them that he was having trouble distinguishing between himself and the others. Then the reality of the situation finally hit him. :We did it!: he crowed in triumph.  
  
:See, I told you we could do it!: Duo said smugly.   
  
:You didn't tell us how much pain you were in,: Trowa said to Quatre.  
  
:It's nothing, really. I'm just glad that we finally did it.:  
  
:We will have to do it again and again, until it becomes easy,: Wufei pointed out.  
  
:Oh, come on, Wufei!: Duo scolded. :Even you're allowed to celebrate a little right now. And can you move? That stupid pebble in your thigh is driving me crazy.:  
  
:Kisama!:   
  
Quatre was amused by how Wufei's accent came through quite clearly even when they were completely immersed in each others' minds.   
  
:So, what do we want to do?: Duo asked.   
  
:What do you mean?: Quatre asked, and as soon as he asked, he knew the answer, which was provided by Duo's mind. :You want to cast a spell?!: he asked, more than a little alarmed. If they lost their concentration now, this was all going to drop back on his head again.  
  
:We'll try something simple,: Duo promised him.  
  
:This is a lot of power,: Heero warned them both.  
  
Quatre took another look at their link, and realized that between the five of them, they had enough energy to completely tear the world apart, destroy everything. Their massed power was incredible, and much more than just the sum of all of their energies apart. They could very easily destroy the world. The thought was frightening, and Quatre clamped down on it as fast as he could, afraid that he might think the end of the world into existence without meaning to. He was too late to keep the others from seeing the thought, though.  
  
:Yeah, we could do a lot of damage,: Duo said soberly, then his usual exuberance returned. :But we have to try something out. We need to be able to use all this power, not just throw it into a pile together.:  
  
:Maybe we could start with something small,: Trowa suggested quietly. :A simple spying spell, for example.:  
  
:Fine! Who do we want to look at?:   
  
There was a moment of silence. None of them had any outside ties left, after their first imprisonment, flight, and virtual imprisonment in the castle. Quatre knew that he could ask to see his father, but he didn't know if he could take that right now. He suspected that that was also the reason that Duo didn't ask to see the faeries, or Trowa to see the circus. Wufei's entire clan was dead, and Heero had never had anyone.   
  
:How about Treize?: Quatre finally suggested. He was nominally their enemy right now, and he had some sort of mage shield over him that had stopped Quatre's last attempt to look in on him.   
  
The others picked his reasons from his mind. :I like it,: Duo said, and Quatre could practically feel him grinning. :Who casts the spell?:  
  
:We all do,: Quatre reminded him. :But I guess I can do the actual incantation myself.:   
  
:No need,: Wufei said, and suddenly their combined consciousness was flying through the walls of the castle, picking up speed as they flew over the capital. In mere seconds they were at Treize's castle, where they slowed momentarily before picking up speed again as they flew through the walls of Treize's castle, finally ending up in a spacious and elegantly furnished room.  
  
:Damn it, Wufei! Give me some warning before you do that!: Duo hollered, and Quatre felt Wufei's satisfaction, combined with... was Heero in on it? Quatre tried to imagine Heero playing a joke of any kind and failed. Then he saw what was in front of them and dropped that line of thought.   
  
Treize sat at a desk, looking through his papers, dictating something to one of his Hunters, a woman named Une who was fanatically devoted to Treize. Now that he was looking for it, Quatre saw the shimmer of energy around Treize that indicated he was covered by an illusion. :He's cloaked in an illusion,: Quatre observed.  
  
:So is she,: Trowa said quietly.   
  
Quatre looked and saw that he was right. Who would have guessed that the king of Oz and his right-hand man (woman) would both be mages? Then Quatre remembered something. :How did we get through the shields?: he asked Wufei.  
  
:We slid through them. If you want specifics, ask me later.:  
  
:Why are we just watching them?: Duo asked.   
  
:What do you want to do, kill them?: Wufei asked. They all knew that none of them could stomach that, not even Heero. Not yet. The specter of their predecessors - what had happened to them, what they were forced to become - haunted them all.   
  
:How about we shatter those illusions?: Duo suggested in a wicked voice. :We wait until he's in a meeting with as many of his assistants and nobles as we can find, and then we shatter them in front of them.:  
  
:No!: Quatre cried, alarmed.   
  
:Why not?! You like Treize?:  
  
:You know how I feel about that, but if you do that to him, there will be a civil war to determine who takes the throne. The traditional rules of succession will be thrown out and whoever is strongest will end up on the throne, but not until after the bloody war. Who do you think will suffer?:  
  
:The people,: Duo said with a sigh. He wasn't stupid. :Sorry, Quatre, you're right. How about if we just shatter them now? It won't do anything, but it might make him nervous.:  
  
:I have no problems with that.:  
  
:Good. You take his Lowness, I'll take the bitch.:  
  
Quatre ignored the crudity, focusing his (their) energy on Treize's crystal pendant. He heard Duo count down in their mind(s), and at the appropriate time, he *squeezed*. The crystal shattered loudly, and the illusion shimmered, then disappeared. Quatre got his first good look at the true face of the man who had hunted them for so long. He looked almost the same - he'd always looked long, now he was simply a little longer, with the large eyes and pointed ears of mages. Hard to believe that one of their own had done so much harm to them.  
  
:Not one of ours,: Trowa corrected him. :One of ours never could have done such a thing.:  
  
Treize knew immediately when they attacked him. It would have been a little difficult to miss the shattering crystal. The shards fell into his lap as he suddenly sat up completely straight, eyes opened wide. He stared at Une, who was also unmasked now and held one of the fragments of the shattered crystal in her hands. She gazed at it silently for a moment, in which time Quatre observed someone distractedly that her face was somewhat rounder than most mages.   
  
A second later her head snapped up and she was looking around, an angry glare on her face. She'd been the one who captured Trowa, Quatre suddenly remembered a memory fragment that belonged in Trowa's head. Fighting off the Hunters... Trowa had killed eight of them before Une got smart, and grabbed Catherine. Trowa couldn't stand to have the first person to treat him like a real person hurt, so he immediately surrendered himself. The Hunters hadn't been happy about him killing so many of them, and were very brutal when they finally got their hands on him. Then came the collar...  
  
Quatre jerked his mind out of the memory. Madness was not pretty, and he had no desire to experience someone else's madness through their memories. He remembered it himself - he was the one who'd brought Trowa out of that insanity in the first place, and he'd gotten enough glimpses of Trowa's mind in that time to last a lifetime.   
  
:You looked.: There was no accusation in Trowa's voice, but that didn't mean that he didn't feel anything. Quatre could feel him - he was upset, feeling somewhat betrayed. No, not betrayed - he knew that Quatre hadn't done it on purpose, but he was feeling, uncomfortable, vulnerable, with his memories so open to his love. Quatre never wanted to make Trowa feel that way.  
  
:I'm sorry. I didn't mean to. I just recognized Une from...: Quatre trailed off, realizing that he was probably making the situation worse. :I'm sorry. If you ever want to see one of mine...:  
  
:It's all right. I understand. Thank you for the gesture.: Trowa paused reflectively. :I may hold you to that.: Now there was a hint of curiosity in his voice, which surprised Quatre. After all of their talks, he had thought that Trowa knew about every aspect of his life, including all of his embarrassing stories from when he was a child. Quatre's knowledge of Trowa was much less thorough. Talking about his past was often painful for Trowa, so Quatre didn't pry. He listened very carefully when Trowa did feel like talking, but didn't push. He wondered what Trowa was thinking, but carefully kept himself from unintentionally finding out the answer to that question.   
  
Treize also was looking around as he slowly stood up, but there was no expression on his face. After a minute or so, he looked directly at them.   
  
:Does he see us?: Quatre asked, wanting to draw back, but the majority of the minds in the merger didn't, so they didn't move.   
  
:Impossible, right, Wu-man?: Duo didn't sound so certain.  
  
:My name is Wufei,: Wufei corrected him. :And it's possible, I believe. But if he can, he's far more powerful than we realized. He's far more powerful than he should be.: They all knew what he was talking about - the mages of today were pitifully weak compared with the mages they now remembered, thanks to their predecessors' memories. Wufei was saying that it would take a mage the caliber of one of the ancient ones to see them now.   
  
"I know you're there," Treize said in a conversational tone.   
  
:How could he be that powerful?: Quatre asked, doing his best to ignore Treize. :I thought that the powerful mages wouldn't start to show up for a year or two.:  
  
:Maybe he's just early,: Duo suggested hopefully, although his tone suggested he didn't believe it.  
  
:It couldn't happen,: Wufei said firmly.  
  
:So is he... like us?: Quatre asked nervously.  
  
"You know, it's very rude to spy on people," Treize continued in that same pleasant tone.  
  
:Let's get out of here,: Duo said, and they all agreed. In a few seconds they were back in Relena's castle.   
  
Quatre felt Duo withdrawing before he realized what was happening. Too late, he shouted, :No, we have to do this a special...: Quatre got cut off as Duo withdrew completely, collapsing the merge and once again dumping all of that energy on top of Quatre.   
He wasn't sure whether it was because he was tired, or because of the number of times he got hit before, or because there was just more energy this time, but it seemed to him that his head hurt a lot more this time. That was his last thought before he blacked out.  
  
------------------------------------------  
  
"Quatre!" Trowa cried, dropping out of the link, a tortured expression on his face. He barely managed to catch Quatre as he slumped to the ground, then turned a glare on Duo, who had a horrified expression on his face. It was the most emotion Heero had ever seen Trowa show, and right now he looked like he was going to kill Duo. They needed him alive to defend the world. Heero stood up and put his body between Trowa and Duo.   
  
"What happened?" Zechs asked, running over. "I had the shield up, but something passed through it anyway. And... what's wrong with Quatre?"  
  
"I... oh, man, I fucked up," Duo said, practically distraught. "I didn't realize..."  
  
"Come on, let's get him to his room," Zechs said to Trowa, who picked up the unconscious Quatre and suddenly vanished. Zechs froze, startled by the sudden action, then with a final glance at Duo, strode off in the direction of Quatre's room.   
  
For his part, Wufei cast a disapproving glance in Duo's direction before striding off in the direction of one of the guard's training rooms, his sword materializing in his hand as he walked. Duo watched him walk away with an expression of pure horror on his face. He turned to look at Heero.  
  
"Heero, I didn't mean to do that..." Duo started, then trailed off, his face going hard and closed-in. 'Never mind." He sighed and turned his back, staring at the blank wall.   
  
Heero stared, not liking what he was seeing, but unsure of what to do. Duo spent so much of his time acting like an idiot that it was easy to forget that he was powerful, dangerous... like Heero, he had fought and killed for years without his magic, although for different reasons, but he taught himself. It was easy to forget that his mind was an equal of any of theirs, that he'd practically taught himself Wufei's language in the months they'd been together despite having a less-than-enthusiastic teacher in Wufei. It was so seldom that he let what he really felt show that it was very easy to forget.  
  
But not now. There was nothing playful about Duo now. In fact, he looked very, very dangerous. Heero reached out towards his thoughts.  
  
He wasn't as good at this as Quatre, but he had a feeling that Duo wasn't really working on shielding his thoughts, and Heero had to know what was going on in his head. Duo had to stay with them, had to remain functional. The survival of the world depended on it.   
Deep in the recesses of his mind, there was something that he didn't want to acknowledge, something that had to help Duo, not because they needed Duo for the mission, but because it made that part of him... uncomfortable... to see Duo hurting. It was getting harder and harder to push that part of his mind aside, to ignore it. He didn't know what that meant, didn't know how to deal with it, and that made him even more... uncomfortable. Upset, even.   
  
He was right - Duo wasn't guarding his thoughts. For a moment he was staggered by the anger, darkness, and self-hatred in Duo's mind. How could Duo, the most friendly and out-going of them all, the one who made himself everyone's friend whether they wanted it or not, how could he hate himself so much? And there was such darkness - it was all self-imposed, Heero realized after a moment's examination. Duo wasn't evil, but he viewed himself as... no, that wasn't right. He didn't think he was evil, but he thought that he was cursed. Everything he loved died, and that's where the blackness came from. And there was something else... a word that Heero didn't recognize.  
  
"Shinigami," he murmured out loud, trying to remember if he'd ever heard the word before. It sounded vaguely familiar, but he couldn't remember from where.  
  
Duo suddenly stiffened and spun to face Heero as he heard the half-whispered word. For a moment there was a heartbroken, horrified, sad look in his eyes, then Duo closed them and turned his head away. "You fucking bastard," he said in a low voice. "You... fucking... you looked into my mind without my permission. How... how dare you?!" he demanded, his voice rising on every word, a finger pointed accusingly at Heero.  
  
"What does it mean? And why's it in your head?" Heero asked.  
  
Duo stared at him in complete disbelief for a minute, then started chuckling to himself. There was more than a hint of hysteria in the sound. He shook his head. "Were you born like this, Heero? Or is this something that's developed naturally over time?"  
  
Heero considered the question, realized that Duo was talking about the fact that he'd ignored Duo's words to follow up on his objective, which was currently to find out what 'Shinigami' was. "No. Trained into me."  
  
Duo snorted softly. "Figures." He started to walk away.  
  
"Where are you going?"  
  
"I'm leaving before I kill someone. Don't worry, I'll be around when the attack comes. But I knocked Quatre unconscious today, tomorrow it will be something worse. I can't let that happen."  
  
Heero felt something inside him that was not connected to the mission. "No!" The word burst out of him before he could stop himself.  
  
Duo hesitated.  
  
Heero forced himself to calm down, fought for control. "What's Shinigami?" he asked. Somehow he knew that the word was very, very important. He needed to know what it meant, in order to understand Duo.  
  
"Why the fuck should I tell you?" Duo asked angrily. "You looked in my brain!"  
  
Heero hesitated. "Please."  
  
Duo stared at him as if he'd grown a second head. "Never thought I'd see the day," he muttered to himself. "Fine. What the hell! It's my secret name. My real name."  
  
Heero frowned. "What's that?"  
  
Duo let out a bark of bitter laughter. "Sometimes humans are so ignorant it's frightening," he muttered. "A secret name is the name that is yours the moment you're born. It's the way the stars and the gods and everything else that matters identify you. If a person finds out another's secret name, they can have a great deal of power over them. All faeries go through a... a ritual, to find their secret names. I participated in one, and that's it. That's how the universe knows me." His voice was very bitter now.  
  
"What does it mean?"   
  
"I didn't know, not until very recently. That's the difference between the younglings and the elders, you know. The younglings are satisfied, happy, knowing just that they have a place in the universe. When that isn't enough, they start to become elders... searching for the meaning of their names. When they find the meaning, then they're elders. I always wondered, but it never seemed important enough until recently."  
  
"What does it mean?"  
  
"Ask Wufei, it's from his language. That's how I learned it."  
  
:Wufei?: Heero asked immediately.  
  
:What?: Wufei sounded impatient, distracted.   
  
:What does Shinigami mean?:  
  
:Shinigami is the god of death in my culture.:  
  
Heero broke off contact. "The god of death?" he asked.   
  
"Yeah. Great name for the universe to pick for me. It fits. Can I leave now?" he asked sarcastically.   
  
"No."  
  
"No? What now, Heero? Do you want to hear a list of all the people I've killed? Or better yet, all the people who've died because of me? We can start with Solo and work our way through all the faeries, it would be more painful," he snarled.  
  
"I... don't want to hurt you."  
  
That caught Duo by surprise. After a few seconds, he said, "I don't want to hurt you either. That's why I have to go."  
  
"No."  
  
"Now what?!"  
  
"It wasn't your fault."  
  
Duo snorted his opinion of that assessment.  
  
"I mean it wasn't only your fault. All of us played a part. We've been working on this all day. We all knew that Quatre had to hold the focus, and that he's been it all day. We knew that every time we failed, it dumped more energy on him. Trowa told me he was keeping an eye on Quatre, and he should have noticed how tired and stressed Quatre was. We were all in the link together, and none of us thought to check on Quatre. With our sensitivity, we should have noticed how tired he was." This was hard for Heero - he was angry with himself, he hated the thought that he'd failed that way, but it was inescapable.  
  
Duo frowned slightly, which meant that his mind was back into working condition, and he was no longer concentrating on how everyone he loved died. "That doesn't make sense. We were completely merged. We should have felt something."  
  
Heero nodded. "Which means it's also Quatre's fault, because he was hiding it from us. He must have known how tired he was, and he was concealing that information. You may have gotten sloppy at the end and tipped the balance, but we all made mistakes. There is the possibility that no matter what we did, Quatre would have collapsed, depending on what his actual condition was. You are not completely responsible, and this doesn't mean that Quatre is going to die because you're here. Your absence could cause his death just as easily, if for some reason we need you and you're not around."  
  
Duo stared at him, then transferred his gaze to the ground. "Heero, I think that's the most I've ever heard you say at one time."  
  
"Hn."  
  
Duo grinned at him. "That's more like it." He became serious again. "No, seriously, Heero. Why are you doing this?" he asked uncertainly.   
  
"Baka," Heero responded automatically. "I wanted you to stay..." he cut himself off. Why was it so important to him that Duo stay with them? With him? With me? What am I thinking? What the hell is wrong with me? He examined the... things he was feeling, and discovered that he cared whether Duo was near, and not just because of the mission. And it made him... sad, upset, when Duo was upset.   
  
"Why?" Duo pressed.  
  
"Because I..." Heero swallowed. He wasn't sure what he was feeling, if he was feeling anything. He didn't know how to deal with this. All he knew about was completing his missions, killing people. This was a lot harder. "Because I... care about you. And I... I don't want you upset. And you are not cursed," he said firmly, regaining his mental footing as he retreated into more familiar ground. "There is no logical reason to think that you staying with me... us will cause us to be killed."  
  
"You... care about me?" Duo asked, and something in his face made Heero wonder if he'd heard anything after that statement.  
  
Heero nodded affirmatively.   
  
Duo took a step closer. "I... Heero, please don't kill me, I just wanted to do this for a long time," he said in a rush, and then leaned forward, his lips brushing against Heero's. The contact lasted for several seconds before Duo pulled back. He had one hand on his knife, Heero noted, as if he thought he'd have to protect himself. Heero didn't tell him that if he was planning to kill Duo, he would have done it the moment Duo touched him. He'd had his hand on his knife, was ready to drive it up into Duo's chest before he realized what he was doing. He barely managed to arrest the automatic reaction so that he could think.   
  
Then he realized that there were two reasons that he wouldn't kill Duo. The first was that Duo was needed to protect the world. The second reason was that he was enjoying the sensation of Duo's lips touching his own.   
  
That shocked him more than anything else, and he actually reached up to touch his own lips after Duo backed off, to see if... he wasn't quite sure why he did it. But he did like the feeling. He had so few emotions that when he felt one, he always acted on it, he always had. So after a few seconds he leaned forward and carefully pressed his lips to Duo's again, this time concentrating on the sensation, so he could examine it more carefully. It was definitely a pleasurable experience, and almost as satisfying was the look on Duo's face when he finally pulled back. Duo's eyes took up fully half of his face as he stared at Heero.  
  
"Ah, Heero, sorry, but I have to ask you this. Did you get really drunk last night or something? Cause..." Duo cut himself off, shaking his head, but at what Heero didn't know. He was about to ask when Trowa's voice spoke into his mind.  
  
:Quatre's awake. He'll be fine in a day or two.:  
  
:I can't feel him,: Heero observed.  
  
:He burned himself out.: There was definite disapproval in Trowa's voice. :He was hiding how tired he really was. I've already talked to him about it. He wants to talk to Duo.:  
  
:I'll bring him.: Heero cut off contact. "Did you hear?"  
  
Duo nodded nervously - the joker wasn't back all the way yet. "Why do you think he wants to talk to me?"  
  
"Ask him," Heero said shortly, grabbing onto Duo's braid, which provided a very tempting target for dragging him around. He'd suggested a few times that Duo should cut it off - it couldn't help him in battle, but Duo had refused. After he demonstrated to Heero the number of different weapons and tools that Duo could hide in his braid, he decided it might have a practical purpose after all.   
  
"Yeow! Heero, leggo!" Duo shouted, stumbling after Heero and sounding a lot more like himself.   
  
---------------------------------  
  
Duo continued to yell as Heero dragged him by his braid up to Quatre's room. His mind was busy on other things right now. He'd half-expected Heero to respond to his kiss with a knife to the gut (although he'd probably have healed Duo immediately after). If not actually a knife, then at least Heero would have done something painful (if not damaging) to him. Nowhere on his list of possible reactions was Heero kissing him back ever listed.   
  
He never actually thought he'd get up the guts to kiss Heero in the first place, despite his long-held attraction for the silent boy. He probably never would, except that then Heero had to go and say that thing about *caring*...   
  
No one had ever said that to him before. He knew that Solo had cared for him, and the faeries, but Solo never got around (or a chance) to saying it out loud, and the faeries didn't feel the need to say it at all. So he'd taken the opportunity to kiss him. And then Heero kissed him back. There was something there that just didn't make sense, and he thought it started when Heero stopped him from running off again. Then him saying he *cared*, him even admitting that he felt anything... Duo felt as if his brain was on overload. And now Quatre wanted to talk to him.  
  
He had no idea what Quatre was going to say. If it was anyone else, Duo would have expected accusations, angry words, and he could have taken them, but Quatre never did anything like that. So what was it?  
  
He'd heard the disapproving tone in Trowa's voice when he said that Quatre had hid his exhaustion. He would have given a lot to be a fly on the wall during that discussion Trowa had mentioned. Trowa sounded angrier now than Duo could ever remember, and what was more amazing, he was angry at Quatre?! Sure, it was because Quatre had gotten himself hurt, but still...  
  
By then they were in front of the door to Quatre's room. With his usual tact, Heero shoved the door open without knocking, dragging Duo's braid with him.   
  
Duo stumbled after him in an attempt to keep from being scalped, then blinked as they entered the darkened room. He wasn't surprised to see the darkened room - light was extremely painful to your eyes when you overdid it with magic. He'd overreached himself a few times when he first started, and the closest he could come to describing it was like a really, really, really bad hangover.  
  
"Hey, Quatre?" Duo said hesitantly as Heero finally let go of his braid.   
  
"Hi, Duo," Quatre said, a hint of pain in his voice.   
  
"Hi. I'm really, really sorry..."  
  
"No!" Quatre said, his voice surprisingly strong. "That's why I wanted to talk to you. I wanted to make sure that you understood that it wasn't your fault! It was mine. I knew how tired I was, but I didn't tell anyone. I didn't want to be the first to fail..." Quatre, looking very much like a scolded child, sneaked a glance at Trowa, who was standing by the bed, his face immobile. "Trowa has already discussed the fallacies of that course of action with me," he said finally, glancing at Trowa again. He might have said more, but suddenly someone opened the doors wide (something even Heero had avoided) flooding the room with light.   
  
Quatre gasped and winced in pain, covering his eyes.  
  
"Close the door!" Duo snapped, but Trowa reacted faster. There was a gust of wind, and the door swung shut behind the intruder.   
  
"Oh, I'm sorry!" said a high-pitched voice that Duo automatically recognized. It was a young woman from Relena's court, one of her ladies-in-waiting. After living at the palace for several months, Duo still had no idea what the function of the 'ladies-in-waiting' was, other than to occasionally run errands for Relena.   
  
"He... hello Hilde," Quatre said shakily. "It's all right. I just had a little accident. I'll be fine in a few days."  
  
Hilde nodded nervously. "Ah, Queen Relena sent me with a message. Oz is sending a delegation to discuss the trade agreement between the nations."  
  
Heero made a slight sound indicating his disbelief of that statement. Duo was more obvious. "Yeah, sure. It's probably just a bunch of Hunters in disguise. Guess we're laying low for a few days, huh?"  
  
Hilde shook her head. "No, the Queen is quite certain that the delegation has no Hunters in it."  
  
"How can she know?" Duo challenged.  
  
Hilde looked directly at Quatre. "Because the delegation is made up entirely of people from the Winner family."  
  
Quatre went absolutely white.  
  
  
  
OK, I spent some time putting extra spaces between the lines in an effort to make this a little more readable. Did it work?  
Yea for Heero and Duo! It took them long enough! I promise, things will really start to pick up (action wise) after this chapter.   
Quatre in the beginning of the section was mostly drawn from my own personal attitude when I'm over-worked and exhausted, except I'm less quiet and more crabby. 


	9. Part 8

Treize examined his image in the mirror as he slipped a new crystal on, nodded once in satisfaction as his image shimmered and he looked fully human again. He'd waited until after he spelled a new crystal for Une to put on one of his spares. He wasn't sure how the spells would interact if he tried to cast a spell on the stone while he was wearing one himself. All he needed was for the two spells to get crossed somehow, so he'd end up with Une's eyes and chin stuck on his face.   
  
Luckily, he still remembered how to cast spells on stones. He was very lucky that he was able to do that - few of today's mages could. Une, for example, could cast little illusions and heal occasionally, but no more. Casting the illusion into the crystal was easier than he'd remembered - much easier, as a matter of fact. Except for a momentary weakness that washed over him, he felt fine. Either he'd gotten stronger from when he was young, or he remembered it being much more difficult that it actually was. Probably the latter - magic wasn't like a muscle, that grew stronger with time and practice. You could become more skillful, certainly, but not stronger.   
  
He was still trying to figure out how they'd managed to get through the shields that surrounded the castle. The shields had been there since the mage wars, and had lasted through them. They should have stood up to just about anything - even the chosen shouldn't have been strong enough to get through it. He'd definitely sensed all five of them - maybe they'd combined their strength somehow? Their power was breathtaking - even though they weren't physically present, the power had felt like a lightning bolt striking him.   
  
He thought they'd been surprised that he could see them, and so they retreated in confusion, which was his main advantage. They had enormous amounts of power, but they were still children. They didn't have the experience he had, and they were by themselves, or close to it. He smiled grimly. By now they would have heard that several of the Winner daughters were on their way to Sank. He wondered how Quatre was reacting...  
  
---------------------------------------  
  
Trowa turned in time to see Quatre turn white, but his expression of polite interest didn't change, and he asked quietly, "Do you know what members of the Winner family?"  
  
"Five of the daughters."  
  
Trowa could feel Quatre's relief, even as burned out as he was. Trowa knew that Quatre loved his father very much, but that there was a lot of anger on both sides now. Lord Winner had... well, not abandoned Quatre, but Quatre obviously viewed it that way. His father had been willing to risk himself to get Quatre out of the compound, but refused to admit that there was anything wrong with Treize keeping the mages locked up. And Lord Winner... Trowa couldn't imagine what he had been thinking, leaving Quatre in that place. He assumed that Winner cared for Quatre, because everyone who met Quatre liked him and wanted to protect him, but still...  
  
"Do you know their names?" Quatre asked, still deathly pale but composed.  
  
"How many sisters do you have anyway?" Duo asked, quickly stepping away before Heero could grab onto his braid again.   
  
"Twenty-nine. Didn't I tell you before?"  
  
Duo smiled sheepishly. "Maybe, I don't remember. How did you end up with twenty-nine sisters?"  
  
"My father had a lot of wives," Quatre said with a slight shrug. He'd begun to regain some of his color. He turned back to Hilde. "Do you know which ones?"  
  
"Ah, no, but the Queen gave me a copy of the message. I really must get back," Hilde said with a nervous glance at Heero, who was splitting his time between eyeing Duo's braid and glaring at her. Well, that's probably what it looked like to Hilde - she didn't know that that was Heero's normal expression. She turned and fled the room.  
  
Trowa was about to ask Quatre if he was all right when he noticed something odd about Heero and Duo. They were somehow... connected, and they hadn't been when he brought Quatre up here. His eye met Duo's for a fraction of a second, before Duo looked away, like he was embarrassed. Was it just Trowa's imagination, or was *Duo* blushing? Duo, whose sense of humor was one of the crudest Trowa had ever seen? And he'd been raised by mercenaries, who weren't known for their sense of decorum.  
  
"Trowa, can you..." Quatre asked softly, squinting as he tried to read the page in the dark room. Trowa quickly brought his attention back to the boy in the bed. He held up a hand and conjured a tiny ball of light, just enough to read with, and not enough to hurt Quatre's eyes. "It only says the name of the one in charge," he muttered to himself. "It's Iria." He raised his head, his eyes glazed as he was obviously thinking very hard. "She's... one of my oldest sisters. I've only seen her once or twice, but she seemed nice." Quatre seemed torn between relief and disappointment. Relief that he wouldn't have to face someone he knew well and disappointment that it wasn't one of his favorite sisters. "It... it says they'll be here the day after tomorrow."  
  
Trowa looked up as there was a slight scuffle at the other end of the room. Heero once again had Duo's braid in his hand and was dragging him through the door, mumbling something about leaving them alone. Trowa stared. Tact? From Heero?! There was definitely something going on here. He wondered briefly at the link he'd seen between them - was that it? He turned his attention back to Quatre.  
  
"Are you all right?" he asked softly.  
  
"Yes... no... I don't know. I... I'm angry at him, most of the time," Quatre said sadly. There was no question as to who 'he' was. "And I don't like feeling that way, but I can't help it. It's... it's really best that's he's not coming," Quatre said, sounding as if he was trying to convince himself.   
  
Trowa sat down on the edge of the bed, right next to Quatre, who immediately leaned into him. "Please? Can you just... stay here for a while?" Quatre begged.   
  
Trowa wrapped one arm around Quatre and pulled at him until he was leaning against his chest, his cheek resting on Trowa's shoulder. Trowa rested both of his arms around Quatre and sat. It never failed to astonish him how Quatre could derive such comfort just from being held, just from being physically near a person. He could feel Quatre trembling slightly - his body was tense, unyielding. Trowa tightened his arms slightly, and felt Quatre press into him in return.   
  
Trowa wasn't sure how long they sat there together in the darkness. It became almost completely dark while they sat there as the sun went all the way down. Finally Trowa felt Quatre begin to relax a little, and he stopped trembling entirely.   
  
Trowa was somewhat relaxed, which was probably why his mental shields slipped a little. He felt Wufei, still practicing with his sword. He felt Duo and Heero... they were together... Suddenly a wave of surprise hit him as Heero kissed Duo - and he wasn't joking about this kiss! Duo was surprised at first, then enthusiastically responded, just as Trowa managed to raise his shields again, as embarrassed as he'd ever been. So that was why they'd been linked.  
  
From somewhere else in the castle, Trowa heard an outraged howl. That would be Wufei. Apparently Trowa wasn't the only one who'd let his shields slip a little.   
  
Quatre, who'd apparently been dozing, jumped a little and sat up suddenly. Then he winced and leaned back into Trowa, rubbing at his own head. "What happened? I thought I heard shouting."  
  
"Wufei."  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"Duo and Heero."  
  
"What?!"  
  
"I felt them."  
  
"Who went first?"  
  
"Heero, I think."  
  
"I'm glad," Quatre declared, snuggling into his chest. "They've been thinking about each other for the longest time..."  
  
"What?" Now Trowa was surprised. "You peaked?"  
  
"I can't help it. It's when we're sleeping. Everyone's dreams get mixed up with mine."  
  
"I didn't realize."  
  
"It's not so bad, most of the time. But sometimes Duo has these horrible nightmares. Wufei too. And Heero doesn't dream. Except about Duo, that's how I knew." Quatre giggled quietly, sounding very young. He was still half-asleep. "I was wondering when they'd get together."  
  
"Hm." They were silent again for several minutes.   
  
"Trowa?"  
  
"Hm?"  
  
"I think I'm about to fall asleep. You might want to move or you'll get stuck."  
  
"I'm fine."  
  
"Trowa? I wanted to tell you I'm sorry. I should have told you that I was tired."  
  
"Hm." Trowa's arms tightened around Quatre again. A few minutes later Quatre's steady breathing told him the smaller boy was asleep. He was stuck. And he couldn't be happier.  
  
--------------------------------------  
  
Two days later Duo waited with the others, in Relena's throne room, waiting for Quatre's sisters to arrive. They were hidden in a crowd of Relena's servants, virtually invisible to everyone present but with an excellent vantage point.   
  
Duo glanced over at Quatre who hadn't said a word all morning. He had the same politely patient look on his face that he'd had ever since they started waiting. Duo was convinced that all this silence wasn't healthy, and he had a strong urge to grab Quatre and shake him, just to get some response other than politely worded nothings.   
  
As if he'd read Duo's thoughts, Trowa put one arm around Quatre and glared at Duo, who held up his hands in mock surrender. It wasn't like he was actually going to do anything to Quatre, he just wanted him to react to something.   
  
As Heero noticed Trowa glaring at Duo, he grabbed onto Duo's braid, his glare at Trowa sending a very clear message. *Mine.* Trowa shrugged and turned his attention back to the floor. Duo smiled happily. He'd been dreaming about Heero for some time, but the reality was far better. He didn't know what had made Heero decide to suddenly admit his interest, but he was very glad it had happened. Whatever it was. He hadn't been this happy since he lived with the faeries... It made him nervous - how long until Heero was taken away from him like everything else?  
  
:No,: Heero told him shortly.  
  
:But..:  
  
:I'm not leaving. Baka.:  
  
Somehow it was very reassuring to hear Heero call him that. Duo grinned again, then his attention was riveted to the floor in front of the throne as several young women in expensive-looking clothes came forward. "Your majesty," said the one in the lead with a graceful curtsey. "King Treize of Oz conveys his greetings and well-wishes, as does my father."  
  
:That's them,: Quatre told them tersely. :The one who spoke, that's Iria. The one to her left with the dark hair is Reeysa. The next one over is Maran, I think. Then Wis... ah, her full name is Wisen. The last one is Patrice. She's Father's first born.:  
  
:If she's first born, why isn't she in charge?: Duo asked.  
  
:She... doesn't get along with father. And she doesn't like me at all. It's hard for her - she is first born, but I would have inherited. I'm not quite sure what father will do now,: he added thoughtfully.  
  
:Oh.:  
  
Iria continued to talk politely to Relena, but her eyes traveled around the room. It was obvious she was searching for something. Her eyes traveled over their concealed group, then turned back. They rested directly on Quatre for a second, then she turned back to Relena.   
  
:She's seen you.:  
  
:Yeah, but she didn't say anything. She wants to talk to me, but not in front of anyone. I'll talk to her later.: With that, Quatre backed up and slipped out the inconspicuous door made for the servants. After a second, they followed him.   
  
:That went pretty well,: Duo commented to Heero. :From the way he's been acting, I was half-expecting him to collapse or something right after he saw them.:  
  
:Hn.:  
  
:You know what I love about you, Hee-chan?: Duo asked playfully, :it's your conversational skills.:  
  
:What did you call me?: Heero demanded.  
  
:Nothing,: Duo said quickly, seeing that Heero still had a hand on his braid.   
  
:Hn.: Heero was silent for a minute, then pulled him in for a rough hug. Duo hugged him back, realizing that for some reason Heero needed some reassurance that he wasn't going anywhere.   
  
I'm going to hunt down and kill whoever it was that taught him that he shouldn't have emotions.  
  
:Already dead,: Heero told him.  
  
:What?:  
  
:He's already dead. Died in a failed assassination attempt.:  
  
:Oh. Good.: Duo gave Heero another squeeze, then pulled away. :It will be a few hours until we can go meet Quatre's sisters. You wanta...: Duo trailed off, wiggling his hips suggestively.   
  
He actually saw a flicker of a smile on Heero's face before he found himself being dragged off again. "Heero! Leggo of my braid! Damn it, it's not a leash!"  
  
----------------------------------  
  
Wufei was silent as he followed the others to the rooms where the Winner delegation was staying. This was... difficult for him. Seeing Quatre's family (a very large one, much like his own) brought home the magnitude of his loss. His own parents had died when he was very young, but he'd been raised by numerous aunts and uncles, so that he knew his duty to his family. And it had been his duty to marry, to bring different Clans together. When they all died... it was his duty to avenge them. And now... now he found himself in a situation that was not expected, could never have been anticipated by his teachers, who'd found him a willing scholar who learned to fight because it was good for a balance of mind and body. And without knowing what his duty was, he wasn't sure what to do.  
  
So at this point he was following his own conscience, and staying with them, because it seemed like the right thing to do. His companions had a certain nobility to them, in the way they handled their destinies, which was why he put up with them, especially that yammering fox Duo. That was the *only* reason that he put up with him, right? But where did that put him? He'd failed to protect his family, failed to avenge them... of course, if they truly defeated the invaders and their demons, he would have vengeance, but what then?  
  
Wufei realized that he was thinking a little too far in advance. With any luck he'd die in the upcoming battle and not have to worry about afterwards. He wondered at how pathetic he'd become, that death would be preferable to having to face living.  
  
He pushed his thoughts aside as they reached the room. Quatre hesitated briefly, then knocked on the door. It was opened to reveal the face of a young maid, one who'd propositioned Wufei several times before he was reduced to leaving the room every time she came near. It was humiliating to run from a woman, but he couldn't think of anything else to do. She ignored his words, becoming more and more aggressive. He couldn't fight her - he didn't fight women - so the only way to avoid her was to not be around.  
  
"I'm here to see Iria," Quatre told her.  
  
"Yes sir," the girl said with a slight curtsey. She knew who they were, and more specifically, who Quatre was, but for appearances, he was requesting to see Iria, the diplomat, not Iria, his sister. Former sister. Maybe. Quatre seemed serious about giving up all past ties, but he also felt very strongly about his sister, that was clear.   
  
She disappeared for a few seconds - very few - then reappeared in the door before opening it all the way and stepping aside. "Please come in."  
  
Quatre murmured his thanks and walked inside, the others following. By the time Wufei got inside, Iria had her arms wrapped around Quatre in a fierce hug, while the other four women watched with varying expressions. Wufei noticed in particular the woman that Quatre had identified as his eldest sister was watching with thinly veiled distaste, and also that her eyes were fixed on Quatre's obviously-pointed ears.   
  
Finally Iria let go of her brother. "Oh, it's so good to see you well, little brother," she said, affection for him clear in her voice.   
  
"It's good to see you too, Iria. How have you been?" Quatre asked. Silently he added, :It's been almost four years since I've seen her.:  
  
Wufei noted with amusement that Quatre had no problems talking behind people's backs, as long as the appearance of manners was maintained. Even more astonishing, he could feel Quatre continuing some private conversation with Trowa at the same time as he continued to talk to Iria.   
  
:Smooth little bugger,: Duo remarked to Heero and Wufei. :I'm beginning to think that there's more to our little guy than it looks. How the hell is he keeping track of two conversations at once?:   
  
:Hn,: Heero commented.  
  
Wufei, watching Quatre cheerfully carrying on two conversations at once without ever letting his sister know, thought to himself that Quatre would have made a very good ruler, either inheriting from his father or taking over the throne if Treize had no sons. It was a shame and a waste.  
  
:Yeah,: Duo agreed with him, and Wufei shot him a dark look. Duo held up his hands. :Hey, if you don't want me reading your thoughts, you shouldn't think so loud. And you should shield. And the only reason I heard you was because I was thinking the exact same thing. I always have, ever since I met his Lowness. When I met him, and I saw Quatre with his father, I said that Quatre would make a better king than Trieze.:  
  
Wufei was not as surprised as he might have been. He'd learned in the preceding months that such issues as decorum and rank did not matter in the least to Duo Maxwell - unless it was faeries. He could very easily see Duo saying that out loud to Treize's face.   
  
:Yeah, that's me, the bigmouth,: Duo agreed grumpily. :But you'll never guess what he did next: He agreed with me. Weird, huh?:  
  
Wufei nodded silently, wondering why the man would do such a thing. He dragged his attention back to Quatre and his sisters as he was introduced. He bowed slightly, wondering how Quatre had introduced Trowa. Somehow he thought the phrase 'my lover' had never passed Quatre's lips. Of course, that wasn't technically true, they weren't lovers - yet. Wufei didn't know why they were waiting - Heero and Duo certainly hadn't. Still...  
  
"It's a pleasure to meet you all," Iria said with a warm smile and a slight curtsey. It was easy to see her relationship to Quatre when she smiled like that. "Our lunch has just been delivered. Would you like to stay?"  
  
Wufei very much did not want to stay, but after he saw the pleading look Quatre threw in their general direction, he nodded his agreement, along with the others. They all sat down and took sandwiches from the large platter of them that had been delivered. They chatted about absolutely nothing while they ate - for about a half-hour, then Iria finally asked if she could talk to Quatre in private. Wufei sighed in relief that he'd finally be able to escape this awkwardness, but Iria rose and guided Quatre into another room, leaving them with no reasonable excuse to escape, and an even more awkward silence.  
  
"So," Duo said nervously, his voice breaking the silence. "Read any good books recently?"  
  
-----------------------------------  
  
Quatre waited until Iria had closed the door behind her. They were in one of the several sleeping quarters attached to the main chamber. "You wanted to talk?" he asked politely, outwardly composed. Inside... well, his hands were clammy, his heart was racing, and it was all he could do to remain standing. That problem, at least, was solved when she seated herself on one of the few chairs in the room. He immediately seated himself opposite her, grateful that he no longer had to stand, especially since he wasn't sure how much longer he could stay in that position.  
  
"When I first heard the news, I didn't want to believe it," she said softly, sipping at some tea she'd brought from the other room. "They called you an animal, Quatre."  
  
"I know," he said softly. "They called us that to our faces, too. I never believed it though."  
  
"Neither did I," she said quickly. "At first I thought it was a lie, but then I took a good look at what I remembered of you, your hair, the way you always hunched your shoulders..." she reached forward to hesitantly touch one of his pointed ears before Quatre pulled back. "Then I realized that you really were... a... a..."  
  
"A mage," he said quietly, realizing she was looking for a word that didn't demote him out of the human race. "One who can control magic power. Not a faery. We resemble them, slightly, because we are more in tune with the magical energies of this world than normal humans, but we are not faeries. I have met them, and we most certainly are not them."  
  
Her eyes flew wide open when he said he'd met faeries, but she quickly regained her composure. "Yes. A mage. But once I realized that you really were a mage, I realized that there must be something wrong with the common perception of... mages, because you were nothing that they said you were. I tried to talk to Father about this but... many of Father's so-called friends were very cruel when they spoke about you to him. He never believed any of it, but..."  
  
"He didn't believe it about me, but he did believe it about the others," Quatre said quietly. "I couldn't abandon them."  
  
"Yes. I understand. But he doesn't. He only sees your rejection, your disobedience. He's still angry, Quatre, but he does love you still."  
  
"I know," Quatre said softly, fighting back tears. Strange that he's sees me rejecting him, while I see him rejecting me, rejecting my kind.  
  
Trowa felt his distress and reached out a tendril of thought. :Are you all right?:  
  
:Yes. How are things out there?:  
  
:Duo's talking. I don't think he's stopped to breathe in the last five minutes.:  
  
:I'll be out there soon.:  
  
Iria was silent for a minute, then she said, "You know, Rashid and the others were very close to coming to rescue you, King Treize or no."  
  
"They were?"  
  
"Yes. They didn't hear about it for a very long time - you know how isolated their base is, out in the desert. They were preparing to travel when you escaped on your own."  
  
"They would have come to rescue me?" Quatre asked, surprised. "Even after the knew what I was..." The Maganac Corps were a group of independent mercenaries who worked for his father, holding an outpost at the edge of his territories. He'd first met them when he was younger, when a caravan he was in was attacked by the Maganacs. It turned out that there were some slavers running a very illegal operation on Winner land, and the Maganacs thought that Quatre's father knew about it. Quatre had told them differently, then earned their respect when he traveled with them to the slavers camp and fought alongside them against the slavers. He'd even saved the life of their leader, a huge man named Rashid, by pushing him out of the path of an arrow. That had earned him their loyalty, along with a nice wound.   
  
"Oh, Quatre, Rashid knew what you were all along," Iria told him.   
  
"He did?" Quatre asked, astonished.  
  
"Did you forget how you met? He remembered seeing you heal up that wound you got while defending him. He also remembers you going around to his men, helping them. You may have tried to disguise it as normal care, but he's observant. He asked me to tell you that if you ever need a place to live... or hide, no one will ever think of his base."  
  
Quatre smiled. "Yes, it is on the edge of nowhere, isn't it?" Their base was on the very southern border of the Winner lands, which were on the southern border of Oz. South of them was only the Great Desert, a seemingly endless wasteland of wind and sand and nothing else. The slavers had been in that region because they figured that no one would ever be down there in the first place, and they'd been close to right.  
  
"Yes. Quatre, there's one thing I don't understand. How did you escape? I've heard some very strange rumors, and I know that Treize hasn't been able to find a single one of the... mages who escaped with you. What happened?"  
  
Quatre took a deep breath. "I... I'm not a normal mage, Iria. There are great forces at work in this world, greater than anything I ever imagined, and there's a war coming, a war that I have to fight in."  
  
"A war?!" Iria cried. "Is it..." she shook her head slightly. "How... I..."  
  
Quatre mistook her reaction for shock. "Yes. And it..." Quatre hesitated as his vision blurred. He closed his eyes for a second, shaking his head. I must not be over the backlash entirely yet, he thought. He opened his eyes. His vision was now clear, but Iria was slumped in her chair, unconscious. Her teacup was still resting in her fingers, but now it tilted at a crazy angle, spilling it's contents on the ground.   
  
The tea... Quatre managed to think as the entire room tilted. :Trowa! The food was drugged!: he tried to shout in warning, but a great weariness was spreading over his entire body, and he wasn't even sure if his call made it out. He tried to call on his healing power, but everything was so far away... He felt disconnected, aware of his body but unable to control it. Then everything went black.  
  
-----------------------------------  
  
Trowa was the first to wake up. His arms were bound behind his back, and he was blindfolded. He called on his powers and dissolved away the bonds on his wrists and ankles, then pulled off the blindfold and looked around.   
  
He was laying on the floor of a small stone room with no visible furniture. No windows, either. The other four were also laying on the floor, also bound, still unconscious. He remembered, just before unconsciousness claimed him, Quatre shouting a warning, something about drugged food... but Relena would never have done that to them. But even if she had, she would have acted before the Winner contingent arrived. It must have been one of Quatre's sisters. He quickly reviewed in his head and determined that Quatre's oldest sister, the one who didn't like him, had not eaten anything, and that she was the only one. Betrayal from your own family... He shook his head slightly.  
  
The first thing he did was attempt to heal himself, and was pleased when it worked. That meant that they were still being held by Quatre's sister, and not Treize, because he knew what they could do and would probably have piled magical restraints on them, as well as keeping them drugged until they were brought before him. Quatre's sister didn't know they were anything but a few minor mages.   
  
With a thought he dissolved all the ropes that bound his companions, and then healed them all in the next breath. :Wake up,: he said directly into their minds, and they woke.  
  
"What the fuck..." Duo said, tearing the blindfold away, his eyes immediately traveling to Heero to make sure he was OK.   
  
"We were drugged," Trowa said quietly, not voicing his suspicions to spare Quatre.  
  
Quatre's face was gray, his lips pressed in a thin line. "It was Patrice, wasn't it?" he asked. "She's the one who drugged us. She drugged Iria, too. I saw her collapse just before me."  
  
Trowa nodded once, and if it was possible, Quatre's face became paler, and there was no expression on it.   
  
"We have to get out of here," Duo said. "That bit... I mean, she's probably called Oz soldiers to come for us."  
  
"Yes, she has," Quatre said quietly, his eyes glazed, indicating that his mind was literally elsewhere. "Let's go."  
  
Duo was already at the door, which opened at his touch, despite the absence of a handle and the presence of a lock that they did not have the key for. "Which way?"  
  
"We're on the top floor of a house in the city," Quatre murmured. It was obvious he'd pulled the information from someone's mind, probably his sister's. Trowa's lips twitched downward at the thought of Quatre having to touch the mind of sister who'd betrayed him.   
  
"Down then," Duo decided. "Which way to the stairs?"  
  
"This way," Quatre gestured, then hesitated. "Just a second." He walked several steps down the hall and stopped at a door. "Duo, can you open this quietly?" he asked. Duo made a vague gesture, and suddenly there was a click and the door opened.   
  
Quatre immediately stepped inside, and Trowa followed him. Inside, sprawled on a bed and several couches, were four of Quatre's sisters. There was a dim glow throughout the room as Quatre healed them, purging their bodies of the drug, and they all woke. Quatre immediately walked to the bed where Iria was laying.   
  
"What happened?" she asked groggily. "The last thing I remember was..." Suddenly she sat bolt upright, looking around. "Patrice! She... Quatre, are you all right?"  
  
"I'm fine. It just put us all to sleep. But she's already called the Oz soldiers. We have to leave. I just wanted to make sure that you were all right before I left."  
  
Suddenly Heero, who had been waiting at the door, threw it open and stepped out of view. A few seconds later he came back in, dragging a very unwilling Patrice with him, her arm twisted behind her back, a knife pressed against her throat.   
  
"Patrice!" Iria shouted, jumping to her feet, but not trying to go to her sister's aide. "You did this? You betrayed us?"  
  
"I betrayed no one! He isn't even human!" Patrice said, her voice heavy with hate. "You heard King Treize! They're dangerous animals that have to be locked up! I was only doing my duty! The Oz soldiers will have the house surrounded by now!"   
  
"She's right," Quatre said quietly to everyone in the room. "I can feel them. But they won't come in for a few minutes. We have that much time." He slowly walked across the room to stand right in front of Patrice, who all but growled at him. "Why did you really do it? I know it wasn't because you believe I'm an animal. If you did, you would have called me 'it', not 'he'. So what was the real reason? Was it really just jealousy, after all these years?"  
  
She glared at him. "I was first-born," she declared after a moment. "I should have been heir!"  
  
Quatre was shielding himself completely, so Trowa couldn't feel what he was feeling, but he closed his eyes and his shoulders slumped. He turned his head away from Trowa, hiding his face for several seconds, but turned back when Patrice started speaking again. "How did you escape? The drug should have lasted for several hours yet..." she fell silent when Quatre lifted a hand, perhaps remembering that Heero still had a knife at her throat. "What? Are you going to have one of your lackeys kill me now?"  
  
"I would never do that to you," Quatre said in a whisper, then touched her forehead. She immediately slumped to the ground, unconscious.   
  
:Do you want me to kill her?: Heero asked.  
  
:No.: There was a long silence, then, :I never realized she hated me that much.:  
  
:Quatre, you can't blame yourself. She's a bitch, and just because she can't deal with life doesn't mean it's your fault,: Duo told him. :And we'd better get out of here. You up to fighting a bunch of Oz soldiers?: It didn't really matter if he was ready or not. With their newfound powers, any one of them could have handled an entire division without any problems.   
  
:Do we have to fight them? I think there's another way.:  
  
:What?:  
  
:How far do you think you guys can fly?:  
  
"Fly?" Duo was so surprised that he spoke out loud.  
  
"Fly?" Iria asked, still not moving. "What are you talking about?"  
  
"We're discussing ways to get out of here," Quatre said. "You're sure you'll be all right? I don't want the Oz soldiers touching you," he told Iria. At the same time, in their minds, he said, :We can always fight our way out, or use magic to conjure ourselves out of range, but you know that we can't conjure ourselves more than a few hundred feet. Do you really want them to see what we can do yet?:  
  
:But fly?: Duo asked as Iria responded, "We'll be fine. We're ambassadors. They don't dare touch us. The worst they can do is send us back to Oz."  
  
"Please... if you can, get word to Relena and tell her what's happened. We'll try, but there's no telling what might happen," Quatre requested. :There is a stronghold in the very southernmost corner of my family's lands. There are people there who have offered us shelter there, and it's the last place Treize would look for us, because it is, technically, in his lands.:   
  
:But fly? We don't even know if our wings work!:   
  
:I checked. They work,: Quatre said quietly. :And since they are, by definition, magic, we ought to be able to go a good long way before we have to stop. I think we could make it to the stronghold in a day or two.:   
  
:I still don't see why we can't just blast them,: Duo grumbled.  
  
:Because we don't know who our enemy is yet,: Quatre said patiently as he exchanged goodbyes with his sisters, the four that were still conscious. :We know that the invaders will take over the bodies of some people here, and those are the ones we'll actually be fighting. We don't know who those people are, and we don't want what we can do to be common knowledge. It's bad enough that Treize has all those people researching the old times. He'll probably know what we're capable of, but we don't want to give that knowledge to our enemies.:   
  
:Yeah, I guess so,: Duo said, not sounding happy. :What the hell? Let's give it a try.:  
  
"Where are you going?" Iria asked as they all turned towards the door.  
  
"The roof," Quatre said as Heero walked out the door.  
  
"Not without me!"  
  
"Iria, it's safer if you stay here..." Quatre started to say, then got a good look at his sister's face. "You won't be able to come with us."  
  
"I'm staying with you until I see you safely beyond the guards," Iria said firmly.   
  
Quatre nodded and they all walked out and up the stairs. Quatre apparently somehow had the entire layout of the house in his head.   
  
:I pulled it out of Patrice's mind,: Quatre told him, his tone sad.  
  
:There wasn't anything you could do,: Trowa told him.   
  
"You can fly?" Iria asked.  
  
"Yes," Quatre said shortly. "You'll see."  
  
:You let a woman order you around?: Wufei asked derisively. Trowa was just about to jump in and say something to defend Quatre when Quatre unexpectedly laughed in their minds.  
  
:Have you ever tried to go against a Winner woman when she had that look on her face?: he asked Wufei.  
  
:Of course not.:  
  
:If you had, you wouldn't be asking that question.:  
  
By then they were on the roof. Trowa looked around as they got outside. It was morning.   
  
"She kept us in that room until night, and then it took her several hours to transport us out of the palace without any of Relena's guards catching her," Quatre said in response to an unspoken question. "We were lucky. She didn't realize that some of Treize's people have been watching the castle ever since we arrived, in plain clothes. If she had, she would have just given us to them. Or maybe just me. She only took you because she didn't want any witnesses."  
  
Trowa shuddered at the thought of any of them back in Treize's hands, especially Quatre.   
  
"So what now?" Iria asked, shivering in the wind.   
  
"Now..." Quatre trailed off with a gasp as the golden wings sprung from his back. It didn't hurt, exactly, but it was a very unusual feeling. Of course, how else would you describe the experience of having magical wings spring from your back? It was unlikely that there would be any other experience like it to compare to.  
  
Iria gasped, one hand over her mouth, eyes wide. "Quatre..."   
  
Trowa reached within himself, and felt his back arch as his wings appeared. He stretched them out to their full length, getting used to the sensation of having muscles pull that weren't supposed to be there, at having feeling in something that was not in his body. He flapped them a few times experimentally, and did rise off the ground a few inches. It required less effort than it should have, based on the birds he'd watched. The body-weight to wingspread didn't seem right, so magic must be involved. If having wings in the first place wasn't strange enough.  
  
If anything, Iria's eyes got wider as she watched the rest of them snap out their wings, one by one. "But... how can this be..." she whispered.  
  
"Go," Quatre instructed out loud to the others. "Go south, for now. We've a ways to go before we'll need more specific directions. We should hide ourselves with illusions, for now."  
  
Trowa felt their agreement, and the other three suddenly disappeared. Or so it would appear to Iria. Trowa could still see them quite clearly. He saw Duo flap his wings and rise into the air with a stunned look on his face. He circled once, then held out his hand to Heero. With great sweeps of his huge white wings, Heero took off and caught up to Duo, touching his hand briefly before heading south. Wufei flapped his wings very slowly, much more slowly than the others, but also smoothly rose into the air. He glanced once more at Quatre and then flew off.   
  
"I told you we weren't normal," Quatre said with a sheepish smile. "You know where we're headed? To the place we discussed earlier. Please don't tell anyone."  
  
"I won't," Iria said. "Quatre..."  
  
"Yes?" Quatre paused in the action of flinging himself off the roof.   
  
"You... you look like an angel," she said, her voice tinged with wonder. Trowa quite agreed with her.  
  
Quatre smiled, completing the picture. "I love you, Iria," he said softly, and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.   
  
He glanced at Trowa, smiled, and cast an illusion of invisibility on himself. Trowa watched as he took off. Quatre barely flapped his wings at all. Of course, shimmering, glowing wings weren't exactly things you saw in nature. Trowa nodded once to Iria, then covered himself in an illusion of invisibility and flew after Quatre.  
  
----------------------------------  
  
As he glided over the shifting desert sands, Duo reflected on the past few weeks, since they'd escaped from the Oz soldiers (again) and flew out here to the very edge of Oz's land.   
  
Duo decided that he really liked flying. Really, really, really liked it. It was the best thing next to sex. Before they'd flown for more than half a day, he found himself doing deep dives and as many loops as he could fit into as small a space as possible. The reactions from the others were predictable - Wufei glowered, Quatre giggled, Trowa just watched him without any expression whatsoever, and Heero watched him very closely, to make sure he was all right. He was fine. He was great. Something about flying just suited him.  
  
It took them three days of steady flying to get to the stronghold Quatre had mentioned. It was maintained by a bunch of very large, muscular men who practically worshipped the ground that Quatre walked on. Duo knew there was some sort of long story behind it, but it was several weeks before he managed to get it out - something about them capturing Quatre and holding him for ransom, and then Quatre *joining* them to fight slavers, and even saving the life of the lead guy. Duo tried to picture Quatre holding a weapon and fighting in an actual battle, against other people, and failed miserably. It was like trying to... like trying to picture Heero laughing! It just didn't work.   
  
Quatre seemed to get better once he was with his friends, but there was a shadow behind his eyes, and more than once the others had found him sitting by himself in a darkened room, just staring at nothing. Even if he wouldn't admit it, his sister's betrayal had hit him hard. Just thinking about it made Duo want to go back and kill the bitch, and the only thing that kept him from doing just that was that it would probably upset Quatre, for reasons beyond Duo's comprehension. Even more incomprehensible was Patrice's betrayal in the first place. Duo would have given almost anything... (well, maybe not anything, but a whole lot) to have a family. He'd grown up on the streets, made his own families, first with Solo, then with the faeries, and most recently, with Heero and the others, but it wasn't the same. Or so he guessed, not having any basis for comparison. How could you just go and betray something like that?   
  
In the middle of the fourth week Duo was out for his morning flight when he saw a figure on horseback racing across the desert towards the stronghold. And a stronghold it was. Duo had traveled quite a bit in his time, and had seen all sorts of forts and castles and supposed strongholds. This was about as close to invulnerable as he'd seen. The walls were tall and thick, and there was not one, but several wells inside and plenty of room for the entire garrison. They had large stores of food and weapons, and the defenders were fit. Any army that wanted to attack would have to try to lay in a siege, not an easy thing to do in a desert, especially with no water supply. All of this probably contributed to the fact that no one had ever tried to take this stronghold. The men kept themselves busy chasing various slavers and thieves who thought it would be a good idea to hide down here in the middle of nowhere.  
  
All of this made the appearance of a rider more curious. This wasn't exactly along the way to anywhere, and Quatre had told him the annual shipment of supplies wouldn't come for a month or more. So what the hell was someone doing here? He watched with interest as the figure reached the outer wall and shouted something to the guard. A few seconds later the gates opened to admit the rider.   
  
Without really thinking about it, Duo cast a spell to get a better look at the man. His clothing gave away his identity - a messenger of some sort, working for one of the nobles of Oz. And, given the location of this base, there was only one noble who would be sending a message here - Lord Winner. Shit. He reached out. :Trowa?:  
  
:Yes?:  
  
:There's a messenger here, and he's got to be carrying a message from Quatre's dad. Where's Quatre?:  
  
:With me.:   
  
:Good. Keep him there while I figure out what's going on.:  
  
A third voice intruded on their conversation. :I'm not an infant,: Quatre said with a sigh. :I can take care of my own problems.:  
  
:You heard that?!: Duo exclaimed, more than a little embarrassed. He'd thought he was talking only to Trowa.  
  
:I hear everything when anyone talks like this,: Quatre replied. :I've learned to ignore it when it doesn't concern me. Where is the messenger?:   
  
:Ah, he just went in the north gate,: Duo said, not at all comfortable with the idea that Quatre heard all of their mental conversations. His mind traveled back to all the conversations he'd had with Heero, thinking they were private.   
  
:Don't worry, I don't pay attention if you're talking to each other,: Quatre said directly into his mind.  
  
:And that's another thing we have to talk about, this endless reading of my mind!: Duo said, mock-scolding.  
  
:Sorry, Duo. I don't do it on purpose,: Quatre apologized. His apology was entirely sincere, which made Duo feel even worse, because if he knew anything, he knew that Quatre would never intentionally hurt someone. He also knew that Quatre was far too inclined to take everything he said seriously, unless he made it very obvious he was joking around.   
  
:It's fine, Q. I know you don't mean to do it.: If there was anyone who knew that sometimes it could be very difficult to control their powers, it was him. He'd thought himself a murderer for a very long time because of one brief lapse. In the end, it had taken Heero to convince him that he wasn't just a killer.  
  
And Quatre's powers were the only ones that were actually linked to other people - it had a weird effect on the way those powers worked, and on Quatre himself. This whole episode with his sister was weighing down on him, and now a communication from his father...  
Suddenly another thought occurred to Duo, and it shook him so much that he stopped paying attention to his wings, and plummeted several hundred feet before he got control of himself. What if his father knows he's here? They'd been here just long enough for the Winner girls to have traveled out of Sank back to their homeland, for them to speak with Lord Winner, and then for him to send a message here. Shit. Duo had been operating under the assumption that it was just a normal communiqué, which was bad enough, but if it was actually from Lord Winner to Quatre...  
  
His mind made up, Duo folded his wings to his back and dove forward, aiming for the walkway around the top of the wall. From there he could get inside, to the living quarters, pretty fast. Hopefully fast enough to beat the messenger there. He had a really bad feeling about this.  
  
  
  
There, I promised there'd be a little more action, and there was. Things kinda speed up a lot after this. 


	10. Part 9

Quatre:  
  
I have recently spoken with Iria and heard of Patrice's actions. I never intended such a thing when I chose to send her to Sank, nor did I know that you had taken refuge there.   
  
Iria informs me that your situation has undergone some changes since we last spoke, but she refuses to give me any specifics, saying that I should talk to you in person. If you can safely make your way to my home from wherever you are hiding, I would very much like to speak with you.   
  
I am pleased to hear that you are in good health, especially since I heard of your escape from the King's custody. While I do not agree with your actions and do not approve, I still wish to speak with you. If you receive this message before winter solstice, I will be at my home. After that I will be traveling around my lands and be out of contact.  
  
I hope I will see you soon.  
  
Lord Winner   
  
------------------------------------  
  
They all watched silently as Quatre sprouted wings and launched himself off the top of the wall. They remained that way until he was out of hearing range, then Duo spoke. "Damn it! I don't like this," he growled. This was the first time they'd split up since he'd joined them, and he really didn't like it. "I just... he shouldn't be doing this? He wouldn't let you come along?" Duo directed his question at Trowa.  
  
Trowa's lips twitched downward, the only outward sign of his unhappiness with the situation. Duo knew how he felt. Quatre hadn't said anything about it, but the carefully chosen words of the letter had hurt him more than an actual verbal attack would have. Not once did he refer to Quatre as 'son' or give any indication that he still felt he had a connection with him. He even referred to the place where Quatre had grown up as 'my home' not our home. Still wish to speak with you, indeed, Duo muttered to himself. He should be grateful that Quatre's willing to speak with him at all, after what he did.  
  
"He said that he needed to take care of this by himself," Trowa said after a moment's hesitation.  
  
"And you let him get away with an answer like that?" Duo demanded. The message had arrived yesterday. Duo hadn't been able to get to Quatre before the messenger - he'd come in while Quatre was reading it. Quatre's face was pale, but not ghost-white, and with that endlessly irritating polite look on it. Without a word he handed over the paper for Trowa and Duo to read. When the finished, he'd quietly announced that he was leaving in the morning, and that he was going alone. No arguments from Duo could change his mind, but when he'd seen Trowa take Quatre off to talk privately, he'd hoped...  
  
"He said that he could take care of himself, and that he had to do this by himself."   
  
"But..." Duo cut off when Trowa raised his one visible eyebrow. "Trowa..." he complained. "You know I hate it when you do that. Use real words. Sentences, even."  
  
"He asked me if I trusted him, if I thought that he could take care of himself, and of I did, then I'd trust his judgment here." Trowa shrugged helplessly.  
  
"Damn it!"  
  
"Why are you so upset?" Heero asked, studying his face.   
  
"I just... this is a bad idea!" Duo exploded, not wanting to voice his fears.   
  
"Why?" Trowa pressed, a worried glint in his eyes at the thought of a threat to Quatre.   
  
"I just..." Duo closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I've been having... dreams, but while I was still awake. I'm just standing somewhere and then I'm... not."  
  
"Visions," Trowa said darkly.  
  
"What?" Everyone looked at Trowa, who avoided their eyes.  
  
"Visions. Things that have happened in the past, or will happen in the future. I... I've had some. Quatre's been helping me." He finally looked at Duo. "What do you see? Is Quatre involved?" Unspoken was another question that Duo understood quite clearly - why was Duo getting visions about Quatre?   
  
"Death," Duo said with a shudder. You'd think he'd be used to this by now. "And... it's all tied in to Quatre somehow." He still couldn't bring himself to say all of what he'd seen. Destruction, horrible destruction, and a laughing Quatre behind it all. He had to be seeing something wrong, or misinterpreting it or something. Quatre... killing? It just didn't make any sense.  
  
"Is he in danger?" Trowa asked. To anyone else, he would have appeared callous, as if he didn't care, but Duo was spending a lot of time with my-face-is-a-stone-wall Heero, so he was getting very good at telling a lot from very minute changes. Trowa swallowed once, and his lips were pressed together, and he actually raised his head enough so that he could look at Duo with both eyes. Yup, definitely very worried.  
  
"No, I don't think so," Duo said. He's not in danger. It's everyone around him. "Besides, you were right. Quatre's a big boy. He can take care of himself."  
  
----------------------------------------  
  
The sun was setting as Quatre flew right up to his father's balcony, hidden in an illusion of invisibility. He landed, absorbed his wings, and then dropped the illusion. He walked into his father's study and looked around. There was no one in sight. He wondered whether or not he should be relieved, and decided that he didn't really care. He was feeling rather numb right now, and nothing he thought about, not his sisters, not even his father, none of that had enough force to penetrate the emotional haze he was in. Only Trowa made him feel anything solid.  
  
I miss him, Quatre thought, although he knew Trowa was only a thought away, and he'd only left his physical presence two days ago. What am I doing here? I know what he's going to say. He won't change his mind. It will just hurt again. It had been almost six months now since they escaped, six months since he'd seen his father, and he could still remember every word that his father had said to him during his imprisonment. He must have come thirty times or more, and Quatre still remembered every single one of their conversations (arguments) individually. What am I doing here?   
  
He sighed. He was here because, despite everything his father said, he was a dutiful son. His father called, and he came running. That was the way it had always been. Not anymore. Quatre's shoulders stiffened slightly. Something had changed when his father refused to accept that people like him were human. Saying that Trowa was not human was unacceptable to him on a very basic level. Completely unacceptable. And the same was true for the others.   
  
His father didn't know it yet, but Quatre wasn't coming back. Not until after the war, anyway. Not until his father admitted that 'faeries' were people, not some sort of exotic animal. He'd only come back this last time because of the respect he'd had (and still had) for his father. He wanted one last chance to settle things before they entered a war they had little hope of surviving.  
  
His mind made up, Quatre walked through his father's study, opened the door, and walked out into the hall, past a very startled-looking servant that Quatre didn't recognize. He was about to cast his mind out to search for his father when he realized that there was an easier way (well, maybe not easier, but easier to explain) to find him. He turned back to the servant. "Where can I find Lord Winner?"   
  
The man stared at him. "How did you get in there, boy?"  
  
Quatre ignored him. "Where is Lord Winner?" he repeated in a cold tone that demanded a response.   
  
"He's in the lounge on the first floor," the man stammered. "But he's not to be disturbed."   
  
"Thank you very much," Quatre said, and headed downstairs, ignoring the stairs that he was drawing. Or rather, the stares that his obviously-pointed ears were drawing. He recognized some of the faces that he passed, but when none of them spoke to him, he didn't say anything himself. Finally he reached the first-floor lounge, and hesitated. The people in the next room practically radiated arrogance. He'd always been sensitive to other's emotions, but since he got the full use of his powers, those other emotions had become painfully clear. He paused for several seconds, trying to shield himself against the inadvertent mental intrusion. Who was his father talking to?  
  
"Master Quatre?!" gasped the servant standing by the door. Quatre focused on him and realized it was Samir, who'd practically raised him. He'd bathed him when he was little, dressed him when he got older, given him lessons on etiquette... the list went on and on. Quatre swallowed past the sudden lump in his throat.   
  
"Not Master Quatre. Just Quatre."  
  
Quatre suddenly found himself in danger of being squeezed to death as Samir wrapped his arms around Quatre. "Oh, it's good to see you again, Master Quatre!"   
  
"It's good to see you too!" Quatre said, smiling at the warmth in Samir's mind, which went a long way to counteracting the emotions coming from the room.   
  
"Oh, Quatre, why did you have to let them catch you?" Samir asked, backing up a step to look at him. Quatre noticed that Samir did not stare at his ears - instead, he was giving him a normal examination for someone who hadn't seen him in over a year. Almost two now, actually. Then he realized something.  
  
"You knew?!" he exclaimed. First Rashid, now Samir... it seemed like everyone knew what he thought had been a well-kept secret. My father was probably the only one who *didn't* know. And what did that say about him?  
  
  
"I washed you when you were a baby," Samir said, reaching to mess up his hair. "You didn't hide your ears with your hair back then. You're lucky your father didn't look at you too closely back then."  
  
"Yes, I suppose so. May I see him?"  
  
"You might want to wait," Samir advised. "He's in there with all of his vassals and two other Lords." As Samir spoke, the double doors suddenly swung open. Quatre jumped back in time to avoid being hit by the doors. Unfortunately, that left him in plain view of the group of people who were marching out of the lounge. His father was in front, flanked by two powerful Lords, and they were followed by several of his father's top advisors and vassals. Darn it.  
  
His father froze the instant he saw him, causing the other two to turn and look at him. The one on the right looked at him and then smirked. "Well, I see the rumors were true. You fathered an animal."  
  
Quatre wanted right then to do something destructive. Well, not destructive, maybe, but he would have had no problems stripping the man naked and then dumping him in the middle of the court. He couldn't do that, though, so he did the only thing he could think of - he raised his head and stared directly at the man for several seconds before sniffing slightly and letting his eyes slide past him, as if he was too insignificant to notice. The man stiffened in anger, and Quatre could see that he was torn between wanting to hit him and not wanting to acknowledge him at all.   
  
The second Lord solved his dilemma by walking around Quatre in a slow circle, examining him like he was a horse. "You know, I never thought I'd see one of these creatures myself."   
  
That did it. Without really thinking about it, Quatre opened himself to his power and light danced in the air around him. "Yes, Renold?" he asked, disregarding the 'Lord' title. "You were saying?"   
  
Lord Renold, who owned most of the land along the southern border of Sank, backed up several steps, a look of terror on his face. He wasn't the bravest of people, Quatre observed. "You're bluffing, boy," he said. "Faeries are harmless."  
  
Quatre made a slight motion with his hand, and Renold rose several inches off the floor. I really shouldn't strip him naked, Quatre thought regretfully. "You know, in the old days, mages were a force to be reckoned with," he said in a conversational tone. "And they will be again, quite soon. You might want to keep that in mind." He put Renold down, then conjured both him and the other Lord outside - to the stables.   
  
"Leave us. Now."   
  
Quatre lowered his head slightly as all of his father's assistants and vassals filed past him, trying not to look at him. When they were out of hearing range, he raised his head and looked at his father. He looked almost the same as he had the last time he'd seen him, a little less than a year ago. "Lord Winner," he said with a slight inclination of his head. Lord Winner. Not Father.   
  
"I left strict instructions for the guards at the gate to escort you to my office when you arrived," he said, a furious scowl on his face. "Why didn't you obey me?"  
  
"I didn't come through the gate," Quatre said calmly.   
  
"What?"  
  
"I flew. I landed on the balcony of your office."  
  
"Don't be ridiculous."   
  
Quatre frowned and lowered his head even farther. "I've never lied to you, Fa... Lord Winner."   
  
"Oh, so it's Lord Winner now, is it? You really think you're serious about disinheriting yourself, don't you?"  
  
Quatre stiffened with anger, although he was too well-trained to show it. "I am serious, Lord Winner. I thought that was made clear when I was locked up as some sort of dangerous animal. You wouldn't want a dangerous animal inheriting your position, would you?" he asked rudely.   
  
"You're not an animal, Quatre," his father said softly. It was the first time he'd said his name. "I never thought that you weren't, and I never listened to anyone who said differently."  
  
"Not me. Just my friends, my kind."  
  
"Your species, you mean," his father said, angry that he hadn't accepted his (sort of) apology. But his father was *wrong* about this - mages weren't another species, and he wasn't the exception - they were all people.   
  
"My people," he repeated quietly but firmly. "We're mages, we aren't another species. And I only came back to say goodbye."  
  
That got his father's attention. "What?!"   
  
Quatre swallowed. This was not easy, and the pained look of betrayal in his father's eyes was not making this easier. "I have a destiny, father. There is a great danger coming, and we have to defend..." Quatre trailed off as he saw the disbelief in his father's eyes.  
  
"You've always been a disobedient son," he said, shaking his eyes. "Maybe that was because of what you are. But you've never lied to me before."  
  
Quatre closed his eyes. This was worse than he ever could have expected. "Father, I..."  
  
"I don't want to talk about this right now, Quatre," his father said, turning his head away. "You may stay in your former quarters. We can... discuss... this in the morning."   
  
Discuss. That means that he lectures, and I'm supposed to agree with him, like a dutiful son. But I can't do that, I can't be a dutiful son about this. And I have to leave tomorrow. It's not safe for us to be apart - if the attack comes early, we have to be together. I will leave tomorrow. But Quatre didn't tell any of this to his father. He simply nodded his agreement to the orders, not even attempting to meet his father's eyes. A few seconds later his father was gone, and he walked back to his room by himself.   
  
He closed the door behind him and looked around. His room was untouched - well, there had to have been some people in here to clean it because there wasn't any dust, but it looked exactly the way he'd left it when he decided to go down to the market with his father that fateful day. He sat down on the bed, surprised at how soft it was. After two years of sleeping either in captivity or on the move (except for the time in Relena's castle), it was almost *too* soft.   
  
Quatre stared into space for a minute as he debated whether or not to go through the house and see a few of the servants he'd called friends. This might be his last chance to see them. On the other hand, if any of them didn't like him anymore, because of what he was, he didn't want to know. And he was tired - it had been a long flight. Quatre was somewhat amused that the fact that his father had practically ordered him to stay in here didn't have any impact whatsoever on his decision.   
  
Quatre was still undecided when a glimmer of light reflecting off of something caught his attention. Curious, he stood up and walked over. It looked like something was planted in the wall next to the door to the bathing chambers. He made a mage light to illuminate the room, and gasped, taking a step back, his eyes fixed on the iron ring that was set into the wall. For a moment, an image of himself, the damned collar still around his neck, pitifully trying to maneuver around the room with a long chain attached to the collar, sprang to mind. The image was so strong that he could almost feel the collar around his throat. These four walls for the rest of my life... He shuddered, called on his power to strengthen himself, then grabbed the ring and ripped it out of the wall. He got a strange satisfaction from the destructive action. He took the ring and threw it off the balcony, listening with satisfaction as it clanged against the cobblestones far below. Maybe he'd bent the thing out of shape. He hoped so.   
  
Quatre abruptly decided that he didn't want to think anymore, and collapsed across his bed. He put himself into a deep trance, to make sure that he didn't dream, and surrendered himself to oblivion.   
  
-----------------------------------  
  
"You're sure it's the one we're looking for?"  
  
"Positive. The fool revealed himself to be far more powerful than a normal faery, and he matches the description. He has to be the one."  
  
"All right, when do we move?"  
  
"A few hours after midnight. That way we can take out the guards right after they change shifts, and we'll have several hours to find him."   
  
"Alive."  
  
"Yeah, we have to keep him alive. The Lady said that she'd kill the person who killed him."   
  
"Yeah, I heard that. I don't think she was kidding."  
  
"Is she ever kidding?"  
  
"Good point. So, the boy's off-limits?"  
  
"Just don't kill him, anything else is fine. He can heal himself pretty quick. And anyone else is fair game - if they get in the way, take them down. Got it?"  
  
"Got it. I've already explained to the men, they know what to do."  
  
--------------------------------  
  
Quatre suddenly came out of his trance, his entire body tingling. What... Quatre was not and had never been a morning person, and it usually took his brain a full twenty minutes to begin functioning after he woke up. Today, he was having no such problems. The fact that it wasn't morning, but still in the middle of the night might have had something to do with it. Or it might have been the way every single one of his senses was screaming 'danger' at him.   
  
Without really thinking about it, Quatre conjured his sword to his hand and rolled out of bed. He was still dressed, having gotten out of the habit of wearing nightclothes, a fact for which he was now grateful. The danger, whatever it was, was *close* and he didn't want to waste any time. He pulled on his boots and quietly slid up to the door, listening. Despite what the others thought about him, he wasn't completely helpless when it came to defending himself, even without magic, and he wasn't about to go throwing his door open when he knew there was something dangerous out there.  
  
He didn't hear anything, so he cracked the door open. It was dark in the hall - too dark, there were usually at least a few candles burning at all times. He frowned slightly - there was still no real evidence that there was anything wrong - someone could have just forgotten to put out the candles tonight. But the danger buzzing in his bones refused to let him believe that. He began to walk down the hall when suddenly his foot caught on something when there should have been only a clean hall. Quatre barely managed to keep himself from falling. When he regained his balance, he dropped to one knee and felt around in the darkness. The first thing he felt was a sticky moisture. He raised his hand to his nose and smelled something metallic. Blood. Quatre swallowed several times and then reached around again, knowing what he was going to find. The aura in this portion of the hall was almost choking him, and he wouldn't have that sort of reaction from anything but the killing of another person. In a few seconds he found what he'd been looking for - a body.   
  
Quatre decided to risk using a little magic, and made a very faint mage-light, the brightest he could stand without worrying about it blinding him, now that his eyes were adjusted to the darkness. He still blinked several times to clear his eyes, then bit his lip as he saw the body in front of him. An elderly man in servant's clothes, a large hole in his back, lay on the ground in front of him. Quatre had seen death before, and it always hit him hard, especially when there was a chance that he could have helped the person. This was not one of those cases - whoever had killed this man had stabbed him and hit the heart. Death would have been near instantaneous. That didn't make it any easier to take. Who had killed him and why?   
  
He was about to extend his senses outward when the danger around him escalated and he threw himself to the side as pain exploded from his shoulder. He stumbled backwards, then fled back to the relative safety of his room, trying to ignore the pain and the arrow protruding from his shoulder. As he pushed the door closed, he heard someone say, "Idiot! That was him! We need that one alive!"  
  
That was him... Quatre froze. They were looking for him! It was obvious that somehow his father's castle had been invaded, and by people who were trying to catch him! It was his fault that the servant was dead! Quatre cast his mind outward and was horrified by what he found - all around the castle, people were dead and dying. The only conscious minds he could sense belonged to the enemy, whoever they were, and they were all looking for him.  
  
Quatre gritted his teeth and grasped the shaft of the arrow buried in his shoulder. He muttered to himself for a moment, then sighed in relief as it dissolved under his touch, point and all. He quickly healed himself. :Trowa?:  
  
:Quatre...: Quatre momentarily felt the link between them strengthen, then Trowa continued, :You were shot! What's happening there?: His mental voice was colored with emotions that were never present in his normal speaking voice.  
  
:I don't know. There are people here - they look like commoners, but they know how to fight. They're slaughtering everyone, and they're looking for me...:  
  
:Get out of there!: Trowa ordered urgently, but Quatre's mind was already moving on. He suddenly realized that among the minds he had not sensed was his father's.   
  
:I have to find my father!: Quatre cried, and cut off the contact before Trowa could protest. Quatre concentrated on his father's room - it wasn't that far away, he should be able to conjure himself there and avoid the men entirely. He concentrated, called in his power... and then nearly blacked out as it unexpectedly lashed back on him. He dropped to his knees. What was that?! He cast his mind out and felt a sort of haze over the entire castle. It was a subtle thing, which was why he didn't notice it before, and it seemed that the only purpose of the spell was to keep him from conjuring himself while he was in the castle.   
  
He snorted in disgust. What was that supposed to do? It wasn't like he couldn't fly off if he wanted, or cast an illusion of invisibility, or... the list went on and on. This was an inconvenience, nothing more. But he had to get to his father.   
  
Normally he'd just cloak himself in an illusion, but he was angry, and he wanted to get to his father the by the direct method. It was obvious that they already knew who and what he was, so he might as well show them exactly what he was capable of. He sheathed the sword at his hip and opened the door, throwing a mage shield up around himself at the same time. Good thing, because as he did so, another arrow impacted off the shield, and it had been headed directly for his head.   
  
"You idiot! Alive, remember?"  
  
That reminded Quatre of the body lying in the corridor outside his room, and with a growled word, he made a half-dozen bright mage-lights. The corridor was suddenly illuminated more brightly than during the day, and the men cried out, covering their eyes. Quatre smiled grimly, and with a thought sent both of the men flying. He started walking down the hall towards his father's room, but stopped when he felt something stirring in the next room over. He blasted the doors out of his way, his power ready, but he restrained himself - barely - when he saw the body of a young woman lying on the bed. No, not a body, she was merely unconscious. He breathed a sigh of relief - they weren't killing everyone, so his father had to still be alive. They wouldn't have killed the Lord of the house if they could avoid it.   
  
Quatre walked back into the hall. He walked past the men, who were still lying there, unconscious, and threw up another shield around himself as several more men, also dressed in peasant's clothes, came running up to him. The way they handled the weapons in their hand indicated that they were something other than farmers, however. A simple push with his mind and they also collapsed to the floor. Quatre ignored them. He had to get to his father.   
  
He walked through the halls, but before just before he reached his father's room, he heard a muffled sound. Weeping. His heart jumped up into his throat, but he swallowed and walked the last few steps. It was dark in this room but the mage light that was following him quickly illuminated the scene. His sister, Iria, crouched over their father's still body. Samir, sprawled on the floor just beyond him. He could sense only one life in the room. Father...   
  
"What happened?" he asked softly, although he already knew the answer to his question.   
  
"They came in here... they were looking for you, they demanded that he turn you over to them... He refused..." Iria told him between her tears. "Samir tried to protect him... they killed them both. They weren't even armed!"  
  
Dead. My father's dead... they were looking for me... my father's dead, Samir is dead... they wanted me... they're all dead... if it wasn't for me, this wouldn't have happened... my father's dead, because they wanted me... my father's dead...   
  
It's my fault. The thought crashed into him like a sledgehammer. It was his fault that his father was dead, his fault that Samir was dead, his fault that they all were dead... For a moment he thought that the grief would crush him. Then he felt the killers - three of them - coming up behind them and something crystallized in his mind. It's their fault.   
  
Without thinking about what he was doing, without even turning around, he killed the men who were sneaking up behind them, simply snuffing out their lives. The bodies dropped to the floor behind him, and he smiled. His mind flew away from his body, and he located all of the other soldiers running around the castle - because that's what they were, Oz soldiers, he noted with an oddly detached portion of his mind - and killed them all as well. Actually all of his mind was somewhat detached. He felt his power rising around him, and in some corner of his mind that was not in this detached state, he heard something screaming as he lost control of his powers, as they rose to engulf him.  
  
He saw a brief glimpse of wonder, fear, then horror on Iria's face as he began to laugh. His father was dead. He'd killed some of those who were responsible, but not all of them. He would have to fix that. He had the power to deal with everyone who was responsible.   
  
And he would.  
  
-------------------------------  
  
Trowa suddenly cried out and dropped to his knees, his hands pressed against his temples. Duo stared at him in horror, then felt all the blood drain out of his face as he felt *something* travel down the link that he had with Quatre. Intense emotional pain, followed by even more intense anger and hatred, and then... nothing. He couldn't feel anything through the link - he could tell Quatre was still alive, but that was it. He couldn't hear anything, and he couldn't reach Quatre's mind.   
  
"Trowa..." Duo said unsteadily, not sure of what had just happened but sure that he didn't like it, and equally certain that Trowa knew what was going on. "What happened? Where's Quatre?" he asked as Duo and Wufei suddenly appeared, conjuring themselves in from wherever they'd been.   
  
"He's gone," Trowa said in a short, tight voice.   
  
"What do you mean, gone?" Duo asked. "I can still feel him. He can't be..." Duo couldn't bring himself to say the word. No, not Quatre. He can't be dead. Thanatos said that I wasn't cursed. *Heero* said I wasn't cursed. He can't be dead.  
  
"Not dead," Trowa said, apparently knowing what was going through his mind. Well, it didn't take a genius to see where his mind usually went. "Alive... but it's not Quatre anymore." He shook his head, and for a moment nearly unbearable pain flashed in his eyes before they returned to their normal blank state.  
  
"What do you mean? What happened?" Duo repeated.  
  
"By the gods," Wufei muttered, and Duo looked at him. Wufei was staring off into space, or so it seemed, until Duo noticed that Wufei happened to be looking at where Quatre was (or had been). Sure, he was a couple of hundred miles away, but Duo doubted that meant anything to Wufei when he was using his powers. "He's let his power consume him. He's not in control." There was more than a hint of horror in his voice, and no derision, which was unusual. Or maybe he was just shocked by the horror of the situation. All of their predecessors had warned them about this, about how the power could feed on you, take control of your body and then use it... Duo shuddered.  
  
"What happened?" he asked one more time.  
  
"His father. Dead. He woke up, and there were people in his home - it was a trap for him... I told him to get out of there, but he said he had to help his father. He blocked me out, and then..."  
  
"They killed his father?" Duo asked in a whisper.  
  
"He found the body and something just... changed inside of him. I can feel it. He killed the men who were in his home - all of them. And he's not going to stop there."  
  
"Quatre killed them?" Duo said, trying to imagine Quatre even *hurting* anyone. Sure, Rashid had told him that Quatre had fought beside them, had had blood on his sword, the same as everyone else, but he still couldn't see it. "It was in self-defense... right?"  
  
Trowa shook his head. "He used his power. Or his power used him. He killed them with a thought. All of them."  
  
Duo stifled a curse. No, not him. If he ever comes out of this, he'll never forgive himself. "So what do we do?" he asked, not really expecting anyone to have an answer.   
  
"We have to stop him," Heero said, deadly serious.  
  
"How?" By then, Duo knew his lover's mind well enough to see where this was going. "No," he said, shaking his head and backing up a step. "No. We can't do that. Not to Quatre. Heero..."  
  
"He has to be stopped. He's going to continue to kill. I can feel it."  
  
"He has to be stopped, he doesn't have to be killed," Wufei interjected, and Duo saw Trowa actually flinch. An actual visible emotion on Trowa's face. This was bad. "If we can break him out of the cycle, he might be able to get control of himself. We still need him to fight... But he cannot be allowed to remain this way." Wufei was avoiding looking at Trowa.   
Duo didn't want to look at him either, but he was standing there facing him - not looking at him would be pretty obvious. So he could very clearly see the conflicting emotions - yes, emotions - in Trowa's eyes, although his expression didn't change. Duo also saw - and felt - when Trowa suddenly shut down, shoving back all emotions and blocking out his link with them until Duo could barely feel him, much less reach his mind. He straightened, his eyes vacant once more. "Whatever needs to be done," he said quietly, sounding determined.  
  
"Don't worry, Tro, we'll get him back," Duo said, trying to sound confident, failing miserably, and realizing it. Shit. Not them. Not Quatre and Trowa. If we have to... to kill Quatre, we might as well bury Trowa with him. Fuck. Why them? They're so sweet together... fuck!  
  
Trowa gazed at him evenly and didn't say anything.  
  
Heero looked at Wufei. "Can you track him?"  
  
Wufei's gaze into space sharpened for a moment, then he shook his head. "He... It's blocking me. Maybe if we go to his home, I can pick up the trail from there." He arched his back and his wings snapped out, and the others quickly followed suit.   
  
Trowa took off first, and Duo just stared after him for a moment, and glanced at Heero, whose expression was unreadable. Wufei cleared his throat and the three of them took off after Trowa. They had to find Quatre and bring him back, it was as simple as that. Because despite everything, Duo was still thinking. When you got used to crap happening as an everyday occurrence in your life, it left you better able to deal with it. So he remembered that they needed Quatre alive for a reason other than Trowa's love life - they needed all five of them to defend the planet.   
  
For a second he wondered if this... attack against Quatre had somehow been involved, a ruse to split them up, but... no, it couldn't be. Treize was just up to his old tricks. Right?  
  
  
  
  
  
All right. A sort-of cliffhanger. This was a really difficult section to write - I do not like writing from the perspective of someone who is going insane during the section I'm writing. Ugh. Hope it comes across all right. C&C welcome.  
  



	11. Part 10

"What?!" Treize demanded, actually jumping out of his seat in shock.   
  
"They're all dead, your Majesty," Lady Une said without batting an eye. "All of the men we sent to capture the Desert Prince are dead, as are most of the house staff, Lord Winner himself, and a few others who were in the house at the time who got in the way."   
  
"How?"  
  
"Our men killed the staff, Winner, and the others. As to what killed our men... currently unknown," she reported. "I did feel a large surge of power coming from inside the castle and shielded myself before all of our men dropped dead. And the boy has escaped."  
  
Treize closed his eyes for a moment, very upset, although he'd never let it show. First of all was Une's casual acceptance of the death of the fifty men under her command - he was going to have to speak to her about that. It just wasn't normal to accept the fact that you were getting all of your people killed so calmly. Next on his list of problems was the utter disaster that this entire fiasco had turned into.   
  
What in the world had he been thinking when he authorized that level of force on the mission? And he knew the men who'd been sent - beasts, most of them, suitable only for combat on the front lines in the event of a war. Why had he done it? He would have known that the results would have been a massacre of the sort that he was now dealing with. He could clearly remember giving the orders to Une, but the memory was odd, as if he'd been separated from his body at the time. For a moment he considered the possibility that one of the Chosen had gotten past his shields and forced him to do it, but immediately dismissed that thought. They had the power to do that, but if they had, they most certainly would not have forced him to give those orders. The Seeker might have forced him to give those orders, but the Seeker hadn't emerged yet. So why had he given those orders?  
  
Damn. He'd never wanted anyone to be killed, much less Lord Winner. He wasn't close to the man, but respected and trusted him, two very rare occurrences. He spared himself a moment of grief at the unnecessary death, then wondered who he was going to find to take over Winner's realm. One of the daughters, perhaps. Winner might have insisted upon that idiotic male-inheritance, but Treize saw no need, especially now that Quatre had been eliminated from the succession. One of the girls would do just as well.  
  
Quatre. Treize suddenly froze. No, it couldn't be. But who else could it be? Who else could have killed all of his men instantaneously? Well, any of the five could have, but who had the motive? Quatre, whose father had just been killed.   
  
Treize wondered how he'd found out. More importantly than that, was there anything he could do to stop Quatre?   
  
He was still considering the issue when a page came stumbling into his quarters, breathing heavily. "Majesty..." he gasped for breath. "There's a report from Fort Mauro."  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"It's gone."  
  
Trieze frowned slightly. "You mean that it's been attacked? Abandoned?"   
  
"No sire. Gone. Entirely. There's nothing left but a big black spot on the ground. The stones, the buildings, the men... there's nothing there."   
  
Treize felt a chill run down his spine as he realized that when it came down to hard facts, there was nothing he could do to stop Quatre. The thought was very, very frightening.  
  
-----------------------------------  
  
When they reached the castle that Quatre's father ruled from, it was dark. No torches anywhere, no guards. After a few minutes of searching they found a few rooms that were lit, in the center of the castle, far away from the walls. As soon as they pushed open the door, an old man and several women were facing them, attempting to hold some crossbows on them. Wufei was about to knock them all out with his power when a female voice shouted, "Stop! Don't hurt them! They're just trying to protect me!" It took him a second to realize that the voice was addressing the four of them, rather than the women holding the crossbows.   
  
The women exchanged a glance and then slowly backed up, lowering their weapons. A blond-haired woman walked through the gap they'd made, and Wufei recognized her. "You're Iria. Quatre's sister."  
  
"Yes. What are you doing here?"  
  
"We're trying to find Quatre."  
  
"He's gone. He left. We haven't seen him since..." she broke off, a pained expression on her face.   
  
"What happened?" Duo asked, looking around.  
  
For the first time Wufei looked around and noticed that the large room - which had a throne at one end - had been transformed from a receiving room to an infirmary. There were humans lying all over the place, most of them with serious injuries. With the exception of one or two who were very close to death, they were all women, a few children, and a few old men. What was going on?  
  
"There was an attack, of sorts, in the middle of the night. A bunch of men - they were dressed like commoners, but they were soldiers, and they were looking for Quatre. They moved through the castle, and they killed every able-bodied man they found, and quite a few others. They mostly spared the women... this is what's left of the residents of the castle. All of the guards are dead - everyone who knew how to use a weapon..." She smiled bitterly. "I received word today from his majesty," she spit out the words as if they were a curse, "that I am now the Lady of the realm. After all of this, I've inherited from my father. But he didn't send anything else, except for a parchment with his royal seal saying that the Winner lands are now mine. No supplies, no men..." She trailed off again. "I've already sent word to several of our closest garrisons, but even at their fastest, it will be another few days before they arrive. Until then we're vulnerable. I've pulled everyone back here, so we can defend ourselves..."  
  
"Defend yourselves from who?" Duo asked, pausing as he walked around the room to look at a young woman with a head wound. The soldiers had struck her to knock her out and she hadn't woken yet.   
  
"We're on the southern border of Oz. At some points our border is secure because of the desert, but at many others we're constantly fighting the Zions to keep them from taking our land. The forces that live on the Winner lands have always been vital to keeping Zion out of Oz. If they hear what's happened..." she trailed off once more, not needing to explain what would happen if they found out.   
  
"We need to talk to you. In private," Wufei told her.  
  
She cast a guilty look around the room. "I really can't leave them. They're my people now..."  
  
Wufei held back a sigh. It seemed that Quatre wasn't the only one with an overdeveloped sense of responsibility in the family. He wondered whether it was something in their blood or something they were taught. :How long will it take to heal all of these people?: he asked silently.   
  
:Just a few minutes,: Duo said grimly. Then, more playfully, he added, :I didn't know you cared, Wuffie!:  
  
:My name is Wufei,: he responded, mostly out of habit. He immediately bent and healed the person closest to him, a woman with a deep gash in her shoulder. She was conscious at the time, and although her eyes widened with panic when he bent over her, she didn't make a sound. The surprise on her face as she discovered that she was healed was almost comic. She started to babble her thanks, and he grunted in response. He'd never been good at dealing with the weaker sex.   
  
In just a few minutes the four of them had healed every person in the room. Duo was the only one in the group that dealt with the thanks they received with anything approaching grace. The rest of them were too used to being by themselves to have anything resembling people skills, and Wufei wasn't too dense to notice it, despite what other people might have thought. He just didn't care enough to try to change that fact.   
  
When they were done, they took Iria off into another room. "What happened to Quatre?" Duo asked immediately.  
  
"He... he killed them. All of them," Iria said, her voice unsteady.  
  
"All of who?"  
  
"The soldiers. Here, I'll show you." She led them out of the small room and down a hall to another large room. It was impossible to see anything in the darkness. "You'll have to make a light, we're running a little short on torches and candles - the soldiers did a lot of damage on their way through the castle."   
  
Wufei muttered imprecations about women who assumed things and took on too much authority, but he did create several mage-lights. And stared. He hadn't seen this sort of massive death since the slaughter of his family. It was a large room - possibly a ballroom - and the floor was almost entirely covered with bodies. Well over a hundred, maybe two. They seemed to be divided up into two groups - on one side of the room were about fifty bodies, on the other side, over a hundred.   
  
"I had my people move all the bodies we could find in here. We'll have a mass funeral and burial as soon as reinforcements arrive. Until then... I'm keeping this room shut off. That side..." she gestured to the larger group of bodies. "Are my people, those who were slaughtered by the soldiers. The other side are the soldiers themselves. There isn't a mark on any of the bodies, but, well... look." She walked over and flipped back the sheet covering one of the bodies to reveal the face.  
  
Wufei looked at it, then automatically recoiled. It wasn't just the taint of magic that infested the corpse, although that was part of it. It was the look of utter horror on the corpse's face, as if the last thing he'd seen before his death had been Hell itself.   
  
"Quatre doesn't mess around," Duo remarked in a subdued voice with a strange twist to it, as though even he wasn't sure if he was joking or not. He looked at the body, then passed his hand over it, and the face suddenly relaxed, eyes closing. Duo shuddered, then looked around the room, his eyes glazing. Wufei glanced at him, then stared at he saw the dark vortex of energy around Duo, entering him from all around. Wufei shook himself slightly. Of course. Duo's power was Death - he would draw power from this situation whether he wanted it or not.   
  
Duo looked around, then his attention was drawn to one of the bodies on the 'allies' side, which had a rich velvet covering, instead of a sheet. "Who's that?" he asked.   
  
"My father," Iria said, closing her eyes for a moment before walking over and flipping the end of the cover down to reveal a middle-aged man with blond hair and a thick mustache. Quatre didn't much resemble his father, it appeared. "He wasn't even armed when they killed him. It happened so fast... Samir tried to protect him, but they killed him too... And then Quatre arrived." She fell silent for a moment, and they waited fairly patiently, considering this was the information that they'd been after the entire time. "His face..." she shuddered. "It wasn't Quatre. Not really. I know my brother pretty well... well, as well as I could, with his secrets..." She shook his head. "It wasn't him. He was... distracted, it seemed like, when he arrived. Then he saw Father..." she looked at her father's body. "And for a second I thought he was going to cry. They fought a lot, and there was a lot of anger on both sides, but there was love, too. When he saw what had happened... His face went blank, and there was this dead look in his eyes. It's like he wasn't even there anymore. Then, then there was this rush, through the air... no, not exactly. I could feel it in my bones. I can't explain it any better than that." She looked at them.  
  
Wufei nodded grimly. What she was describing was the closest a non-mage could come to feeling magic. And she probably could have felt it, based on the sheer amount of power that was floating around in any of their bodies right now. "Then?"  
  
"He started glowing. All over his body, but especially his eyes. It kept flickering in and out, like he was... like there was something inside of him, fighting for control. I thought... for a second... he was going to come back, then the soldiers came up behind him. He blinked, and they just dropped to the ground. I thought he'd knocked them out, but then the glow was there, and it wouldn't go away. And he started laughing. It was the most horrible sound..." she broke off and shuttered again. "Then he disappeared. I checked the soldiers... Since then I've been trying to keep the survivors alive and together, to keep everything together until reinforcements arrive." She raised her chin slightly and her back stiffened. "And I will." Her expression softened again. "You're going to go look for him?"  
  
Wufei nodded sharply, neglecting to mention that there might not be anything they could do to bring Quatre back, and that they might have to kill him. He might not be tactful, but he wasn't stupid.   
  
"Thank you." She stood up, covered her father again, and wiped at the few tears that had escaped her attempts at control. "I'm sorry, but I really have to get back to my people. They get upset if I leave for long, and they've already been through so much... If you need anything on your way out, feel free to take it. Horses, supplies, anything you need, just take it."  
  
Wufei nodded dismissively, then felt a sharp pain in his side as Duo elbowed him. He glared at Duo, who didn't appear to be paying any attention to Wufei at all. "Thank you very much, Iria. We'll do our best to help Quatre." He shot a very sharp glance at Wufei, and elbowed him again.   
  
Wufei suddenly realized what Duo wanted him to do. He cast a furious glare at Duo... I'm going to kill him the first chance I get, he promised himself. "Thank you," he muttered to the woman, who accepted it with considerable grace, considering how it was delivered. She then left.   
  
"Bright Lady!" Duo exclaimed out loud. "What is wrong with you guys?! I know that you don't spend much time with people, but damn! And you," he turned to Wufei. "Weren't you an heir or something? Don't you have any manners? I grew up on the streets and I know better than that! That woman has just lost just about everyone she's ever cared about, and all you can do is grunt at her?!" Duo shook his head and fell silent for several minutes while the others stared at him. "Never mind. I should know better by now," he muttered darkly. Then he grinned at them. "So where are we going?"  
  
To say that Wufei was astonished would be a vast understatement, and he began to suspect that Duo was even more disturbed than he had previously assumed. He'd gone from dark and brooding to joking in less than a second. And why was he so excited over the way they acted around that woman? Certainly, she was having personal difficulties...  
  
Oh. Maybe that was it - Duo had seen his 'family' slaughtered, and was now empathizing with her. It made sense.   
  
But what was really strange was Wufei's lack of empathy. The same thing had happened to him, after all - his family had been slaughtered right in front of him, and his wife. Shouldn't he feel something in this situation?   
  
Wufei thought hard for a moment, trying to remember the last time he'd really felt anything. Sure, he felt normal emotions in response to his everyday actions - fear when the demons were chasing them again, irritation at Duo's continual rambling, concern when Quatre overreached himself (mixed with an equal amount of irritation for making him feel like that in the first place), but when he thought about his family - nothing. He'd never mourned for them. He was, officially, in mourning for them - that was why he wore white - but he couldn't remember any time that he'd sat down and actually grieved.   
  
In comparison to Duo, who was still grieving for family he'd lost, and Quatre, who had gone insane when he lost his father, that made him look more than a little bit heartless.   
  
Wufei realized that they were still waiting for an answer to Duo's question, and put his own thoughts aside for the time being. It seemed like he was doing that a lot. In fact, that might have something to do with the emotional void he was in now - he'd been so busy surviving and escaping that he didn't have a chance to think about his loss.  
  
"I can track him. I can't tell where he is right now, but we can follow him," he told them.  
  
"So, should we bother taking horses so we're incognito, or just fly?" Duo asked, proving once again that there was more to him than appeared. "I hate to say this, but I think Quatre's whole 'I'm going to kill every Oz soldier alive' thing has sort of shoved our secrecy down the drain."   
  
Wufei saw the barest hint of a smile tugging at the corners of Heero's mouth, and sighed. The two relationships in their little group complicated things so much that it wasn't even worth looking into.   
  
Heero snapped out his wings in response to Duo's sort-of question. They followed suit, and launched themselves out of the nearest window. Trowa hadn't said a word since he'd told them what he'd felt from his link with Quatre. Wufei concentrated on the magical residue - Quatre was acting a bit like a miniature sun right then, casting off magical energy in all directions, so the trail wasn't hard to pick up. Unfortunately it had very little of his own unique signature in it. Wufei didn't want to think about what that meant, either. In any case, the trail was so strong Wufei thought that a non-mage could probably find it. It didn't make him any happier to note that the trail headed straight for the northern border of the Winner lands. On one hand, it meant that he retained enough of his personality that he wasn't going to attack anyone who had worked for his father. On the other hand... he was killing people. Lots of people.  
  
With those grim thoughts as company, they started chasing Quatre across Oz. He had a three-day head start on them.  
  
-------------------------------------  
  
He took a breath, and then another. The sound of air rushing in and out of his lungs sounded deafening to him, although he knew that it wasn't that loud. All of his attention was focused on the small outpost in front of him. It was more of a stopping place for supply caravans then any sort of military outpost. There were only a hundred Oz soldiers there, but it was better than nothing. He'd actually waited eight hours before striking, because there had been a bunch of merchants resting there.   
  
Somewhere in the deep recesses of his mind, he recognized the caravan as it slowly pulled away, down the road. Something very familiar about it... He shook his head slightly. That wasn't why he was here. He removed the illusion of invisibility he'd cloaked himself with. To the men on guard on the walls below, it must have looked like he just appeared out of thin air. He heard shouts of alarm, shouts that quickly turned to terror as he started to gather his power for the strike. He knew that he was glowing, and for a moment, felt a gentle sort of regret. There was something very wrong here, something wrong with this entire situation... The men didn't want to die, and he... he didn't want...  
  
There was a surge of energy, driving him on in his quest and banishing the thought. He was here to destroy them. His power had reached the necessary level. A moment's concentration was all it took. The men didn't even have time to scream. There was suddenly a large blackened hole where the outpost had been. He smiled slightly, then glanced down, surprised to discover that his hands were shaking. In fact, his entire body was shaking. What was wrong with him?   
  
~You killed them!~  
  
-So?- he snarled, already used to the long arguments he had with the voice in his head. It said that it was actually him, and that he had to stop his quest. Sometimes it cried. That was when it was hardest to ignore. It had given him it's name before, but it was easier just to think of it as the voice.   
  
~Please, stop. They're people.~  
  
-They're the enemy. They deserve to die.-  
  
~They've never done anything to you.~  
  
-They're the enemy.- That was, of course, enough of an answer in itself, and he could never understand why the voice wouldn't accept that.   
  
~Please stop.~ It sounded like the voice was on the verge of crying again.   
  
Tears formed in his eyes, and he angrily swatted them away. The voice wasn't him! -Who are you and why are you talking to me?!- he demanded angrily.   
  
~I told you. I'm who you're supposed to be, but I lost control,~ the voice told him. ~That's my body you're using to kill people.~ It sounded infinitely sad.  
  
He snorted. He was here, he had a body, and his mission was to kill Oz soldiers. It was simple, and it was the truth. Why was he having such a hard time accepting it? Angry with himself, he shoved the other voice back, hearing a startled squeak from the voice, then it fell silent, and he nodded to himself. It was getting easier to ignore the voice. Soon he wouldn't have to worry about listening to Quatre at all.  
  
-------------------------------------  
  
Duo stared at the remains (not really) of the last fort that Quatre had taken out. When he decides to take something out, he doesn't do it halfway, he thought, observing the black spot that was all the evidence that there'd ever been something here. "How many does that make?" he asked aloud, even though he already knew the answer.  
  
"Eight," Heero replied, looking around.   
  
"He did this less than twenty-four hours ago," Wufei said, his gaze unfocussed. "We're catching up with him."  
  
"Is there a him left?" Duo asked bitterly before he could censor himself and come up with something a little better-sounding than that, especially with Trowa nearby. He saw Trowa stiffen for a moment and felt even worse. They'd been traveling at full speed for over a week now, trying to catch up with Quatre. Wufei was still tracking him with magic, although it was hardly necessary, what with the trail of massive destruction he was leaving. He wasn't even bothering to try to make random strikes - there was nothing Oz had that could stop him, and he knew it, so he was just jumping from one fort to another, in a very steady pattern. At least this way the soldiers had a little warning - he'd heard that they were deserting their posts when they thought Quatre was coming. It was keeping down his body-count. Apparently he was more into physical destruction than actually killing people, because the last two forts he'd taken out had been deserted and he'd blasted them just the same. Not that Duo blamed the men.   
  
He clung to the fact that Quatre apparently wasn't out to just kill people as a sign that something of himself remained.   
  
They all turned at the same time as there was a massive flare of magical energy somewhere to the north. There was enough energy that Duo actually saw a shaft of pure white light shoot into the sky in the distance. Duo swore under his breath. That's nine. He knew that Wufei saw magical energy all the time, all around him, but he usually had to make an effort to see those same currents. If he could see it without trying...  
  
But it also meant that they'd finally caught up with him. Almost, anyway. "Come on! Let's go!" he urged the others, who exchanged a glance before they took off again. If he didn't move, they'd catch up to him in less than an hour.   
  
:I hate to crush your endless optimisim,: Wufei grumbled. :But does anyone have any ideas how we're going to stop him if we have to?:  
  
:There are four of us,: Heero said simply.   
  
:Yes, but we haven't given ourselves completely over to the power,: Wufei reminded him.   
  
:Shit. You mean he's more powerful than us right now?: Duo asked, mentally adding, In addition to being insane?   
  
:He is power right now.:  
  
:Between the four of us, can we take him down if we need to?:  
  
Wufei considered, far too long in Duo's opinion. :I believe so.:  
  
:Great. So we can do it if we have to. But lets try talking to him first, huh?:  
  
------------------------------------  
  
He walked across the blackened spot that was left of the stronghold. This was the third one he'd found that had been completely deserted by the time he arrived. Another day without a kill. He frowned. Destroying their resources was good, but not what his mission was. Then he shrugged mentally. He could always kill them later. For now, the voice didn't bother him as much when he didn't kill anyone. It was getting fainter now, it bothered him less, and it actually hadn't spoken to him in almost two full days, a vast improvement over the time when it was talking to him almost constantly.  
  
He sensed something strange south of him, and cast out his senses. Four powerful creatures were flying towards him. He took a closer look, and saw that they were mages, powerful ones, like in the old times. Who were they and what were they doing here?  
  
~They're looking for you. Me.~  
  
-Where have you been?- he demanded.   
  
~Hiding.~  
  
-What?-  
  
~You're trying to kill me.~  
  
-What?!- He didn't particularly like the voice, and he didn't listen to it very much, but he didn't want to... well, kill it, or whatever it was you did to voices. -No I'm not.-  
  
~Well, maybe not on purpose, but I can't exist forever without a body, and you've got mine,~ the voice explained patiently. The voice, whoever or whatever it was, was so patient and forgiving it was ridiculous. If it had shown some sort of anger at being ousted, he might have been inclined to give it its body back. Well, probably not, but he would have entertained the idea. ~And your subconscious is trying to hunt me down.~  
  
-Well, I don't have any control over that,- he retorted. -Who are they?-  
  
~Friends of mine. Not Oz,~ the voice quickly added. ~They're like me. Like you. Please don't hurt them.~  
  
-I won't, unless they try to interfere in my mission,- he said. He didn't know why he cared at all what the voice said or thought, but he was willing to humor it - to an extent.   
  
~They want me back,~ the voice said uncertainly, which was answer enough.   
  
-I will not permit them to interfere with the elimination of Oz,- he said firmly. Then his curiosity got the best of him. -Why are they coming after me? You.-  
  
There was a moment's hesitation. ~There's a prophecy... the five of us - the four of them and me - were supposed to protect the world. If I don't get my body back, they may lose. And...~  
  
-And?-  
  
~And I love Trowa.~  
  
"Trowa?" Even as he repeated the name aloud, he felt a strange pressure in his chest, and he felt his heartbeat speed up. The name was *so* familiar...   
  
"NO!" the word was ripped out of his throat before he realized what he was saying. He was in control. He didn't feel anything for this Trowa - it was the voice that was making him feel things, it had to be. "Stop it!"  
  
~It's not me,~ the voice said, sounding excited. ~It's you. It's both of us. You remember him, don't you?~  
  
-NO!-  
  
~You do!~  
  
He felt a strange pulling sensation in the back of his mind. -What's happening?!-  
  
~We're beginning to merge back together. Please, I want to see Trowa!~  
  
The name had the same effect on him as before, and it made him even angrier. "NO!" he shouted out loud, shoving Quatre away as hard as he can. Pain lanced through his forehead and he nearly blacked out. The voice suddenly disappeared, and he wondered whether he'd finally gotten rid of it for good. For some reason, the thought that it might be permanently gone panicked him. No. Certainly he'd just pushed the voice back into hiding again. It would be back eventually, hopefully after he... dealt... with the newcomers, one way or another.   
  
He turned his head towards the newcomers as they flew into view. His eyes immediately were drawn to the third one in the line, a mage boy with brown hair that covered half of his face, even with the wind blowing in it, who had large brown wings. Trowa. His heart contracted again. He frowned. There was something very wrong here, and it had to be dealt with immediately, so he could continue his work.  
  
They saw him standing there and swooped down to land. All four of them stared at him without speaking for several minutes. Then the long-haired boy hesitantly asked, "Quatre..."  
  
That name! So they thought that this body was supposed to belong to the voice as well. "I am not Quatre," he said slowly, calmly. "Quatre is not... here right now," he finished, having no idea where the voice went when it wasn't talking to him. "Who are you?"   
  
The boy stared at him with a mixture of horror and disbelief on his face. "OK... um, I'm Duo. Ah... you said that Quatre's not here right now. Where is he?"  
  
He shrugged. "Not here. Sometimes he talks to me. He said he knew you."  
  
"Yeah, Quatre's a good friend of ours. We'd kind of like to have him back. Can we talk with him?"  
  
"He's not here. What do you want?"  
  
"Ah... Actually, what we want is Quatre. We want our friend back. Hey Quatre, are you in there?" Duo called out, still looking at him. Idiot.  
  
He made a gesture with his hand and knocked Duo over with pure power. That felt good. The blue-eyed one suddenly put himself in front of Duo, and one of his hands held a sphere of incandescent white energy. The blue-eyed one threw it at him. He automatically blocked it. "I will not permit you to interfere in my mission," he said simply.   
  
"Your mission?" Trowa asked. He looked at the brown-haired boy, and once again felt that strange pressure in his chest. He pushed it back and swallowed.  
  
"I... I promised him that I wouldn't kill you unless it was absolutely necessary," he told Trowa. "Don't get in my way, and I won't."   
  
Trowa's face was expressionless, but his eyes were also empty, and there was something wrong with that, but he couldn't think what. Before he had a chance to chase down why it was wrong, he felt something to the north. A lot of somethings, actually. A feral smile appeared on his face as he realized what it was.  
  
--------------------------------------  
  
Duo got a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach as Quatre - or whatever was currently in control of Quatre's body - suddenly cocked his head to one side, as if he was listening to something. The bad feeling increased exponentially when a feral smile slowly appeared on Quatre's face, driving home the fact that this wasn't Quatre. Quatre would never have that expression on his face. Never.  
  
"What is it?" he asked nervously.   
  
Quatre... whoever he was... turned to look directly at Duo, and Duo noted with shock that Quatre's eyes were yellow-tinged. That was definitely new - he was quite certain that color had never been in Quatre's eyes before - those strange gold flecks in the blue. "Oz," he breathed, a hint of excitement in his voice. Uh-oh.   
  
"Ah, Quat... whoever you are," Duo hastily corrected himself as anger flashed through those strange eyes. "What is your mission?"  
  
"Kill Oz," Quatre said matter-of-factly.   
  
Shit. They were so screwed. What did they have here? Well, it looks like we have an insane Quatre who thinks he's someone else, talks about himself in the third person, who flattened me with power alone without an effort, and who happens to be a homicidal maniac right now. Great. He glanced at the others. Heero was still standing in front of Duo, although Duo was uncertain if any of them could defend against him right now. Trowa was still just staring at not-Quatre, and Wufei was looking in the same direction that Quatre had looked, a frown on his face. Looked like keeping up the conversation was up to him, as usual. "Ah, why?" he asked.  
  
Quatre blinked, confusion running across his face for a moment before that eerie expressionless mask returned. Duo expected to see that sort of thing on Trowa or Heero - he'd suspect there was something seriously wrong if they started showing emotions, but Quatre wasn't supposed to be like this. "It's the mission."  
  
Great, now he sounds like Heero. "But why is it the mission?" he pressed, trying to reach the real Quatre. He had to be in there somewhere.   
  
Again that moment of hesitation. "They... they hurt someone. They must be killed."  
  
Gotta get him off this whole 'kill' thing. "Who'd they hurt?"  
  
Quatre froze, his eyes vacant. Finally he whispered, "Quatre. They hurt him."  
  
Duo winced when he started talking about himself in the third person again, but nodded encouragingly. "And why is it your mission?"  
  
Quatre frowned. "It is my mission. Quatre says that you were his friends. You should want me to do this too." His eyes narrowed dangerously. "You lied to Quatre." His head turned again in the same direction as before, and he actually giggled. Things were going downhill fast. "They're looking for me. How ironic," he drawled with a smile on his face. He started to rise into the air, and Duo took several steps forward, intent on stopping him. Heero scrambled to stay between them.   
  
"Quatre stop!"  
  
Quatre turned his head back to stare at Duo, then his eyes narrowed again. "I'm not Quatre!" he said sharply, and made a broad gesture with his hand. Duo felt the air around him crackle with the enormous amount of energy Quatre had just directed at him. He felt Heero grunt as he absorbed most of the blow meant for Duo. "No!" Quatre snarled. "You are not permitted to interfere!" He gestured again and Heero went flying.   
  
"Heero!" Duo shouted, and suddenly found himself rooted to the spot. He couldn't move at all as Quatre slowly walked up to him, glowing yellow energies flaring around his right hand. Duo conjured a ball of black fire and threw it at Quatre, but the ball never reached him, dissolving mid-air. Duo watched in shock as Quatre raised his fist, obviously about to strike him. No. He couldn't. This was Quatre. This couldn't be happening...  
  
Quatre hesitated for a fraction of a second, then started to bring his hand down.   
  
"Stop!" Trowa suddenly threw himself in front of Duo, and Quatre froze. Duo suddenly found himself able to move again, and he stumbled backwards, face white. Quatre really had been going to kill him!  
  
Now Quatre was frozen, staring at Trowa. Tears appeared in his eyes and started to trickle down his cheeks, but he impatiently brushed them away with his left hand, and there was no sign of emotion in his eyes. "Trowa, get out of my way," he said sharply. "I don't want to hurt you, but I have to kill them."  
  
"No, you don't. Please, Quatre..."  
  
"My name is not Quatre!" he said again, and started to rise into the air. Trowa, flapping his wings, matched him, but made no move to stop him.   
  
:Get the soldiers out of here,: he instructed them silently. :Give me a chance to talk to him alone.:  
  
:Mission accepted,: Heero said, immediately taking off in the direction of the approaching soldiers at top speed. Quatre and Trowa were fifty feet in the air, just hanging there, so there was a good chance he'd get to the soldiers first. Wufei took off after him.  
  
Duo cast one last glance at the pair. :Be careful, Trowa. That's not our Quatre,: he warned, and then chased after the others.   
  
---------------------------------------  
  
Trowa paced Quatre as he flew towards the soldiers. He'd managed to keep Quatre in one place for several minutes by talking to him. Quatre... or whatever it was that was currently inhabiting his body... insisted that he needed to go kill the Oz soldiers, but he stayed to listen. Or maybe he was listening to something else, based on the way he kept tilting his head to one side at random intervals. It would have just looked ridiculous, but Trowa recognized the gesture as one Quatre made when he was carrying on a mental conversation. So who was he talking to?  
  
Suddenly he became still, looking in the direction of the soldiers. "You tricked me," he said sharply. "You're delaying me. It won't work. I'm going to kill them." And with that he took off, Trowa struggling to keep up. Quatre flew through magic alone, while Trowa had to actually use his wings, so although his flight was magic-assisted, it was a lot of work to keep up with Quatre when he was going at full speed.   
  
Quatre stopped and hovered as he observed what had probably been an army ten minutes earlier. Now it was a mass of men screaming, running, and fighting without any sort of organization. What they were running from was patently obvious - the three huge illusion-monsters that were growling, stomping, roaring and breathing fire at the retreating army. Duo had created a huge shadow-creature of blackness that towered fifty feet in the air, with glowing red eyes that seemed to shoot fire at everyone. Heero had created some sort of ogre creature, and done so with such detail that Trowa suspected he might have actually seen one. That was an unpleasant thought. Wufei, going for simplicity, perhaps, had simply made a huge red dragon. If Trowa had been those men, bereft of magical protection and not knowing the illusionary nature of their enemies, he would have run, too.   
  
"No," Quatre growled from beside him. "They won't get away." He raised both of his hands above his head and a ball of light appeared between them. The gold flecks in his eyes seemed to glow.   
  
"Quatre, please stop!" Trowa said desperately as he saw what Quatre was going to do. Duo, Heero, and Wufei were standing down there, all of their attention focused on their illusions. Normal illusions were simple, but to maintain something that size for any amount of time required all of a person's concentration, as well as a good deal of their energy. There was no way they could see what was coming. The blast that Quatre was preparing would obliterate them, as well as the majority of the army.   
  
Trowa began muttering a long and complicated spell to himself, being very careful not to stumble over the words in his haste. This was so-called 'High Magic' at it's most complicated, and he wasn't as good at this as Wufei. On the other hand, this spell was intrinsically tied to his power, so none of the others would be able to follow, and Quatre wouldn't be able to use the spell to get back. At the very least, it would give the others several hours with which to scatter the troops. As he spoke the last words of the spell, he threw himself at Quatre.  
  
The world lurched around them, and they were suddenly in the air above a cornfield. Trowa could see a small village in the distance. He hadn't set the spell to take them to any particular place, just to a distant point of energy. There were spots, seemingly randomly spaced around the globe, where the energies of the earth seemed to converge. He'd never been to most of them, but he knew the location of each like the back of his hand. They were almost a twenty-four hour flight from the location of the soldiers - plenty of time to settle this, one way or another.  
  
Suddenly Quatre shoved him away, eyes practically glowing with rage. He opened and closed his mouth several times, then backed up several feet. An invisible force suddenly slammed him to the ground, and as he sensed Quatre drawing in his power again, he idly wondered if he was going to survive long enough for the others to even find him.  
  
----------------------------------------  
  
~Stop it!~ Quatre shouted at him.   
  
-He's interfering with my mission,- he growled back.   
  
~He's Trowa!~ Quatre shot back, as if that was an answer in itself. Maybe it was. He hesitated. Trowa stood on the ground, looking up at him.   
  
-He stopped me from completing my mission. He tricked me!- he growled, and threw a ball of energy, much smaller than the one he'd been preparing. Trowa would easily be able to deflect it, and he knew it, too.   
  
:Quatre?: said a voice in his head, different than the one that usually talked to him.   
  
-Who are you?- He realized the answer before he got a response. -Get out of my head.-  
  
:I won't fight you. I just want to talk to Quatre.:  
  
-Get out!- he growled.  
  
There was a short silence, and he was acutely aware of both of them watching him, waiting for him to do something. Finally Quatre said, ~You know, you can't keep my body forever. You're not real. Either it will break down because of the stress you're putting on it, or I'll get it back. It's mine.~  
  
He hated to admit it, but there seemed to be some truth to what Quatre was saying. No sooner had the thought passed through his mind before he violently rejected it. No! It was his body. And besides... -It's my body now,- he said smugly. -And you're getting weaker. I can feel it. I have felt it. A few more days and you'll be gone for good.-   
  
He felt a brief flare of panic from Quatre, and then a surge of energy. Quatre's presence in *his* mind suddenly strengthened as Quatre moved to take his mind back. He felt a stab of panic at the sudden strength Quatre possessed, then his eyes fixed on Trowa. There was an almost visible line of energy flowing from Trowa to his body, but he couldn't feel it. Trowa was supporting Quatre, was trying to help him, and it was working!  
  
All of this passed through his (Quatre's?) mind in a second. After that he had no time to think it through, only to react, and he reacted instinctively, to protect himself. He gathered up a large amount of energy - enough to vaporize a three-square-mile tract of land, roughly - and threw it at Trowa, who made no move to defend himself.   
  
An instant after the energy left his hand, he realized what he'd done and pain stabbed through his chest. Time seemed to slow down as he watched the ball continue towards Trowa, who still didn't even move, much less try to shield himself. He gasped, grasping futilely at his chest. NO! TROWA! he screamed within his mind, and in that moment he wasn't sure whether it was himself or Quatre who had cried out. Then there was a flash of light in front of his eyes as Quatre suddenly darted forward to take possession of his body, banishing the other personality.   
  
His eyes widened in horror as he dove towards Trowa, but by then the energy ball had reached him, and Trowa didn't know that he was back in control, so he still made no move to defend himself. As the ball hit Trowa, Quatre felt a stab of pain through his chest that eclipsed anything he'd felt before, and he lost consciousness, his failure screaming at him from every direction as Trowa faded from his mind.  
  
The failure mocked him. He'd fought so hard to get his own body back, to take it back from whatever had possessed him for what seemed like an eternity now. And he'd succeeded, succeeded in getting his body back just in time to watch a blow he'd delivered kill Trowa, and he was too late to do anything about it, too late to stop it, too late to even warn Trowa...  
  
Too late.  
  
Too late...  
  
----------------------------------------  
  
Duo stared in satisfaction as the last of the soldiers ran off, most of them screaming in terror. And as far as he could tell, they'd managed not to kill anyone. Not that he had a major problem with killing Oz soldiers, but they might need them later. He wasn't a tactician or anything, but it seemed obvious, even to him, that you don't destroy your resources until you get a good look at the enemy. He looked at the other two. :Well, that was fun,: he remarked cheerfully, completely serious in his comment. It had been fun. :What now?:  
  
:We have to find them,: Heero said immediately.  
  
Wufei was looking around, his eyes glazed. Suddenly he stiffened, eyes glazing. "Kisama!" he hissed, a second before the pain hit Duo.   
  
It was a good thing that he was on the ground when it happened, because he lost control of everything in that moment of agony, and when it passed, he was sitting on the ground next to Heero and an unconscious Wufei.   
  
Duo raised a hand to his head, trying to ease some of the pain when he felt something else. His mouth dropped open in shock and horror as a presence faded from his mind. Since they remained aware of each other even when they were asleep, there was only one explanation he could think of for the emptiness he felt now.   
  
An anguished cry rose into the air, and he only dimly recognized it as his own. "Bright Lady! NO!"  
  
  
  
  
Don't worry, it will get better soon and I'll be able to get to the actual fight part. Those of you who have seen the entire show will know where this is going, but I'm going to write it as if it was completely original (ha!) and not give anything away beforehand, to bear with me if I take some time getting there.   



	12. Part 11

:Damn it, I don't like this.:  
  
:The guards said that he was being held down here,: Heero replied silently. They were currently cloaked in illusions, and had overheard the guards talking. They were in Treize's castle - or rather, under Treize's castle, in his dungeon. It had taken them almost three weeks to track Quatre here after... whatever happened after Trowa conjured the two of them hundreds of miles away. A farmer out in that remote region said that he'd seen a brilliant flash of light, and that a few days later a large group of 'troublesome-looking men' had passed through the area. It had taken them almost a week to figure out that the 'troublesome men' had been a bunch of Oz Hunters in disguise, and even more time to find out where they'd taken Quatre.   
  
They were cloaked and had been wandering around the dungeon for several hours now, because although they could feel Quatre's presence in their minds, it was indistinct, almost as if he was unconscious, and it wasn't providing them with any guidance. They didn't dare use any magic here, so close to Treize and the mages in his employ. They probably could have handled anything that Treize could throw at them, but maybe not before his soldiers got to Quatre and hurt him, so they'd decided to opt for secrecy. So they'd been wandering around randomly, and it was only luck that they'd heard a comment from one of the guards that sent them down here, to the lowest level of the dungeon where it looked like no one had been there in years, searching for Quatre. They hadn't bothered to look for Trowa once they heard that the Hunters had captured the blond-haired faery. They'd all felt one of their own fade from their mind, and had resigned themselves to the death of one of their own.  
  
Duo was trying to tell himself that it wasn't his fault, that Trowa hadn't died simply because he'd been his friend. Heero had told him it multiple times, and even Wufei had snarled it at him once when he got tired of Duo's moping around. But as much as he wanted to, he couldn't believe it. Everyone he'd ever cared for had died, and now it was happening again. First Trowa, and the others would followed. Even Heero would die, and he'd be left alone. Again.   
  
He tried to shake off those thoughts and concentrate on the task at hand. :Why can't we feel him? He can't still be unconscious.: Duo hesitated. :Could he?:  
  
:Treize might not have wanted him to be in good condition,: Wufei said grimly. :He might not have treated any injuries Quatre had.:  
  
:He wouldn't do that,: Duo said, wishing he believed it. :He wants him alive, right?:  
  
:Alive, but not necessarily whole. He doesn't need to be completely healthy to utilize his powers,: Wufei pointed out. Duo wished he hadn't brought up that point. They flattened themselves against the wall as a guard walked by.   
  
:We must be getting close,: Duo said unnecessarily.   
  
:Here it is,: Heero said as they came to a door with a single torch burning next to it. The door was heavy, solid wood, with only a small hole in it to look through, and that hole was also currently covered with wood. Heero slid the wood away and peered inside. :I can't see anything,: he reported. :Duo, can you get this door open?:  
  
Duo understood the unasked portion of the question - without magic. It would be simple enough to magic the door open, but they were trying to avoid that. The illusions that were hiding them were completely self-contained, directing their magic inward, so that they wouldn't be sensed, but almost anything else would give them away. Duo dropped to one knee, reaching behind him to grab the lock picks that he habitually stored in his braid. :Grab that torch, will you?: he asked silently. :The light here sucks.:   
  
Heero pulled the torch out of it's socket and held it closer to the lock. It was old and heavy but not very complicated. In less than a minute he had it unlocked, and pushed open the door. It was pitch black inside. :Hand me that torch,: he instructed. Heero handed it to him and he stepped inside. At first, he saw nothing. Then he heard a low whimper and the clink of chains.   
  
His eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness and he could make out a small figure crouched by the wall opposite the door. His eyes widened. "Quatre?"  
  
The figure whimpered again and cowered lower, hiding his face in his arms. :His eyes,: Wufei said sharply. :The light hurts his eyes.:  
  
Duo quickly handed the torch to Heero. :Quatre? Is that you?:   
  
The figure gave no sign that it had heard him, so he resorted to normal speech. "Quatre? Is that you?"  
  
The figure raised it's head slightly. "Duo?" asked a familiar voice. "Is that really you?"  
  
"Yeah, it's me," Duo responded, staring in horror at Quatre. His clothes were torn and dirty - or burned, it was hard to tell - and didn't seem to protect him at all from the cold of the cell. There was a large thick metal collar around his neck, and manacles on his wrists. All three were attached to the wall by chains. Quatre's eyes seemed almost entirely blue - his pupils were huge and dilated, probably from trying to see in the dark room. There were a few bruises visible on his pale face, and Duo frowned. "Come on, we're getting you out of here."   
  
"No!"  
  
"No?" Duo asked, then something struck him. There was no way that those chains or this cell could ever hold any of them. Why hadn't Quatre escaped on his own? "Quat, what are you doing here? Why didn't you escape? We were looking for you."   
  
"I..." Quatre swallowed and lowered his head, staring at his manacled hands. "I should be here. I am... exactly what Treize said. I'm a dangerous animal that needs to be locked up."   
  
Duo froze, horrified by the words coming out of Quatre's mouth, as well as the defeated tone he had. "Quatre, you can't mean that..."  
  
Quatre turned his head away. "Duo, did you see what I did to those bases? Did you see what I did to the men in them? To the men in my own home? To..." his voice caught slightly. "... Trowa." His voice fell off to a whisper at the last word.   
  
"Quatre... that wasn't your fault..." Duo tried to tell him.  
  
"Then whose fault was it?" Quatre asked softly. "It was my fault. I know that. I let the power take control of me, instead of the other way around. And that's why I have to stay here - it's safer for everyone that way."  
  
"Don't be ridiculous. You're not going to hurt us."  
  
"Trowa thought that, too. I'm not going with you - I can't risk it. You know about this, Duo, you have to understand," he pleaded. "I don't want to hurt you."  
  
Duo knew exactly what was going through Quatre's mind, because it was exactly what he'd thought about himself a thousand times, that maybe if he'd left, stayed away, those he loved wouldn't have been killed. That didn't mean he was going to accept it from Quatre, though. He fell back on the one argument he knew Quatre could never ignore. "And what about the war? Are you going to abandon all of humanity because you're afraid about what might happen? We need you."   
  
Quatre smiled sadly at him. "Can't you feel it, Duo?"  
  
"Feel what?"   
  
"Look at me. I've lost my power."  
  
"What?" But even as he spoke in disbelief, Duo was examining Quatre with his other senses, and found... nothing. Quatre still looked like a faery, but that was it, no magic, no energy coursing through him, nothing. He was, for all intents and purposes, human. Now that Duo realized it, he could see some physical differences in Quatre. He was more than just pale, he was practically translucent, washed-out, like he was half-dead already. Maybe he is. Trowa is dead, and the two of them were so close... "It can't be."  
  
"I've lost my powers. All of them. I can't even heal this," he said, gesturing at his face, then pulled away as Duo raised a hand to do just that. "Don't. It doesn't hurt much, and it's no more than I deserve."   
  
That was at the center of it, Duo realized. Quatre believe that he deserved to be punished for all that he'd done, especially killing Trowa, if he was reading Quatre's motives correctly. "There... there's nothing left?" he asked. "How is that possible?"  
  
"I don't know. I can't sense anything, though. I... I feel very empty, now. I was so used to feeling people, but I couldn't even feel you when you opened the door - I thought it was one of the guards. I can't feel you now."   
  
"Kuso!" Wufei swore quietly, and Duo felt shock run down the link.   
  
:What?: he asked silently.   
  
:We have to go,: Wufei told him.  
  
:We can't leave him here!: Duo protested. :And why do we have to go?:  
  
:I can't feel Quatre at all.:  
  
:So?:  
  
"You guys are talking, aren't you?" Quatre asked softly. "I can't hear anything, but you always have that slightly distant look when you talk..." He shifted slightly, and Duo winced when he heard the metal links of the chain clink against each other. "You'd better get out of here. I'm sure you're shielded, but there's no reason for you to risk yourselves on my account. I've done enough damage already."  
  
"Quatre, we're not leaving you here," Duo said, but even as the words left his mouth, he knew them to be a lie. Well, sixteen years without a lie isn't bad, he thought pragmatically. So that's what lying feels like. It's not so hard.  
  
"Yes you will. Heero and Wufei know it, don't they? I'll fight you if you try to take me out of here, and it's not worth it for a human boy who can't even wipe the bruises off his own face. So you're going to have to leave me. Will you do me a favor?"  
  
Duo couldn't look Quatre in the eye. "Sure Quat. What do you want?"  
  
"Will you please kill Treize?"   
  
"What?" If there was something he was expecting, that wasn't it.   
  
"I... I think I hate him. I'm not sure, I'm not used to these feelings. But I guess now that I don't have my powers anymore, I can do that. I... I want him to die. I don't want him to hurt anyone else. I... I don't like these feelings," he stammered, blinking away tears. "But I feel more strongly this way about him than almost anyone else."  
  
Shit. Duo promised himself that Treize would be dying for a very long time for doing this to Quatre. But something caught his attention. Almost anyone else? "Almost anyone else?" he repeated blankly. Please don't let it be me.  
  
"I hate myself most of all."  
  
-----------------------------------------  
  
"Now that we're out of there, would you please tell me what the hell you were talking about? The whole world is going to hell, Quatre's... well, you saw him! And Trowa..." he trailed off.  
  
"Trowa's alive," Wufei said quietly.   
  
"Trowa's... what?" Duo asked blankly.   
  
"He's alive."  
  
"What?! What are you talking about?! How can... what?"  
  
"Quatre's lost his powers. We were in the room with him, and we couldn't feel him at all. But we all feel something... and it's not Quatre. So Trowa has to be alive."  
  
"But... we all felt someone fade away..." Duo said, then he realized. "That was Quatre? But..."   
  
"Why can't we find him?"  
  
"Quatre thinks he killed him, he must have been badly hurt. He could be unconscious still, in a coma."  
  
"OK. Maybe I'm just really tired or really desperate, but this is all making some kind of sense to me," Duo shook his head. "But why did we have to leave Quatre? And why did he lose his powers? I thought that couldn't happen, ever."   
  
"We had to leave him because of the reasons he said. He would have fought us if we tried to rescue him. He is punishing himself for the things he did - especially for Trowa's death. Did you notice? Even when he was... not sane, he made it so that he could avoid killing. After the first two bases, every base he destroyed was completely abandoned. Even insane, he tried to avoid taking lives, even if it was unconscious. But now he thinks he killed Trowa. And you know what was between the two of them," Wufei said, raising an eyebrow.   
  
"Yeah, of course I know. You'd have to be deaf, blind, and stupid as a rock not to see it," Duo said impatiently. "OK, I see why he's punishing himself. So how did he lose his powers?"   
  
"Remember what Zechs told us? That Quatre can't hate people - it's not in his nature. And we all know that our nature is tied up in our powers, however we might wish it otherwise." Duo wondered what Wufei meant by that comment. "I think that's why his powers have failed. He's not supposed to be able to hate, but the power of his emotions has somehow overridden his very nature. Probably the only reason he was able to do it himself was that he wasn't hating anyone else, just himself. You heard him - Treize is responsible for the death of his father, of most of the people he'd known, and is also indirectly responsible for the deaths of all those soldiers, and he believes that Trowa is dead - Treize is responsible for all of that, and he *thinks* that he hates Treize."  
  
"Shit," Duo muttered as he thought about it. Poor Quatre wasn't able to hate people, so he'd finally turned it against himself. And that must have somehow gone against his powers, so as long as he hated himself, he'd never be able to sense them. And because he couldn't sense them, he didn't know that Trowa was still alive, so he wouldn't stop hating himself. It was a nice circular trap, and Quatre wouldn't be getting out of it on his own - if anything, he'd probably say that he deserved it. He's punishing himself more than he knows. "So we have to find Trowa, figure out where the hell he's been and what's wrong with him, fix it, and then take *him* to see Quatre so he can talk him out of this depression thing he's into, right?"  
  
The other two stared at him. "What?" he asked them.  
  
"Don't you need to breathe?" Wufei asked sharply.   
  
"Sure. Why?"  
  
Wufei shook his head. "How are we to find Trowa? We know that no one near the... blast site saw him. So where do we go next?"  
  
"Treize must have him locked away somewhere," Duo said. "He and Quatre would have been near each other when Treize's soldiers found him. So..."  
  
"What do you suggest, we start working our way through Treize's men until we find one who knows what they did with Trowa?" Wufei asked sarcastically. "Quatre was the one who was good at that delicate mind stuff - I can cast the spells to make them tell us information, but if it doesn't destroy their minds, they most certainly will remember the incident. We can kill them, of course, but he's going to get suspicious if large numbers of his officers disappear, and may move Trowa."  
  
Duo frowned. It was basically the same problem they'd had with Quatre. An idea occurred to him, and he grimaced. "Ah, you guys are going to hate me for this, but I have an idea."  
  
Heero looked at him curiously. Well, Duo knew it was a curious look, even though it just looked like a blank stare. Finally he grunted. "What?"  
  
"We could go back to Sank."  
  
He found it infinitely amusing to see Heero Yuy actually flinch, while Wufei took a step backwards. "Why?" he snapped.  
  
"Well, she's the ruler of a foreign nation, right? She's got to have some spies in Oz, maybe even in Treize's people. It's worth a shot, anyway. We don't have to stay long." They looked at him in horror. "I promise."  
  
------------------------------------------  
  
Treize smiled to himself. He'd been expecting the three remaining Chosen to try to retrieve Quatre. The only disappointing thing was that he hadn't caught them in the act - he'd only heard from his sources in the city that the three boys had been seen leaving through the main gate. But Quatre was still here... his smile widened. He was useless to them like this, no wonder they'd left him behind.   
  
He'd been prepared to pile magical restrictions on top of the boy when he was brought in, but anyone with any sensitivity would have known that there was something wrong with him the moment they saw him - a human probably would have guessed that he had some fatal wasting disease, but a mage could see the problem: he had no magic left, no power at all. It bothered Treize that he didn't know how it had happened, but he had bigger problems, like capturing the three remaining boys. They'd left his city, but where would they go?   
  
They might head back to the faery forest, but somehow Treize doubted that the braided one would want to go back there, especially after seeing what happened to Quatre's family. The other two had no connections to speak of - they might head back to the circus, but the circus was unlikely to accept them with open arms after they lost the boy with the strange bangs. He smiled to himself.   
  
So what was left? They hadn't left the Sank kingdom under the best of circumstances and it was unlikely they'd go back there, but he'd have his men check it out anyway. Most likely they'd try to disappear into the populace at large, and they could probably do it quite easily. It didn't really matter - now that he held a key player in the upcoming battle, he was sure not to be left out. Even Quatre, without his powers, might still prove useful.  
  
With that thought he moved to the mirror in his dressing room. He passed a hand over it, murmuring a few words, and an image appeared in the mirror. Lady Une, stalking through the palace, berating a young group of guards... but it wasn't the Lady that held his attention. It was the young man drifting silently behind her, almost like a shadow. It was the Solemn Clown - or Triton, as he was now called, who'd somehow survived his battle with Quatre but had lost all of his memories in the process. He still wore a bandage around his head. Treize had had several of his people exhaust themselves healing his body, but had been afraid to let them near his head. They didn't really understand their powers, and he hadn't wanted to take the chance that they would accidentally help him regain his memory. He still had all of his powers, but no memory of them or how to use them. Everyone in the palace had been forbidden to speak to him about the differences between 'faeries' and humans, and the bandages hid his ears, so chances were he didn't even know he was different yet. He'd only regained consciousness a week ago and was pathetically grateful and believed all the lies Lady Une told him about his past. Sometimes Treize wondered if he was actually better off this way - the past she'd given him was much nicer than the one he'd actually lived, and he was probably much happier now, too.   
  
Right now he was dressed in an Oz uniform, following Lady Une around as a personal aide. The Lady said he was actually quite brilliant, when his lack of memories didn't get in his way. Treize found that interesting, but as long as he retained control of one of the five (four now) whose powers still worked, he was satisfied. Things were going well.  
  
------------------------------------------  
  
:Hee-chan, come on! The spy has finally arrived!:  
  
Heero growled something unintelligible and hopped down off the top of the tower he'd been sitting on. His wings snapped out and caught him before he'd fallen more than a hundred feet and he glided smoothly to the ground in the garden in the center of the palace.   
  
Despite Duo's promise, they'd been here for almost two weeks. Relena had been very pleased (too pleased) to see them again, and had immediately summoned her spymaster, but it took time to travel from Oz to Sank, and it took more time than that because first the spy had to manufacture an excuse to leave so that he wouldn't be detected. Heero knew all of this, and understood the necessity, but it had meant that he had to spend two weeks here, with that woman...  
  
Whenever she wasn't engaged in official business, Relena came to see him, to talk endlessly about a number of topics. Sometimes Duo came to rescue him, but most often he would sit in another room and make rude comments about Relena, so that he had not one, but two jabbering idiots to worry about, only one of which he wanted to deal with. Wufei disappeared whenever Relena was in the room, and Zechs was out of the area (probably searching for them), so there was no one else to stop her. As a way of getting some quiet, Heero had taken to hiding on the highest towers he could find, completely inaccessible by normal humans. At least there Relena couldn't talk to him, although it didn't do much about Duo, who could follow him anywhere, or talk directly into his head if he wanted.  
  
Somehow, Heero didn't mind listening to Duo's endless prattle. Sometimes he even found it somewhat soothing. They hadn't had sex since Quatre went crazy, but Duo still liked cuddling a lot, and they'd slept together almost every night. Especially right after, when they thought Trowa was dead and were searching for Quatre, Duo had had horrible nightmares all night long, and it didn't take a mindreader to know that he was blaming himself. Illogical, but there it was, and Heero didn't know how to convince him that it wasn't his fault. So he'd settled for holding Duo until the dreams went away, and then slowly coaxing him back to sleep.   
  
The thought that Quatre was sitting in that dungeon, blaming himself for Trowa's death all this time wasn't helping, either. Quatre was too nice for his own good, Heero decided. If it had been him, he would have been upset, but he would have continued to fight. Quatre was so busy punishing himself that others were going to suffer. But what if it was Duo who'd died? asked an insidious portion of his mind. Heero felt his heart beat speed up at the very thought, and pushed it away. Duo wasn't dead, and he wasn't going anywhere, not if Heero had anything to say about it. The sooner they found Trowa, the better, because then they could get Quatre back and he could stop thinking about these things.  
  
:Location?: he asked.  
  
:Her private quarters. You know, the ones behind the throne room that we went to the first day?:  
  
Heero grunted his understanding and landed in the garden, ignoring the startled look the gardener gave him. He quickly absorbed his wings and then conjured himself to the room in question. Wufei and Duo were already there, as was Relena... and a pair of women?  
  
:Who are they?: he sent to the other two as Relena began to speak.  
  
"Heero, I want you to meet Sally Po and Lucrezia Noin. Sally is my spymaster in charge of all of my agents in Oz, and Lucrezia works in the Palace itself. Hopefully between them they can answer any questions you have." Relena beamed at him and fell silent, but showed no signs of leaving.  
  
:This is ridiculous!: Wufei snarled. :What good will a couple of women do?:  
  
:Take it easy,: Duo muttered. :We might as well ask them.:  
  
"So you're the ones that the King is searching for," Noin remarked, studying them carefully. "You're the ones that the prophecies speak of."  
  
"What do you know?" Heero demanded flatly.  
  
Noin smiled slightly. "I've worked on researching some of the prophecies describing you, the saviors of humanity." She frowned slightly. "But weren't there supposed to be five?"  
  
:She doesn't even know about Quatre and Trowa, she's useless,: Wufei growled.  
  
:Hostile much? Give her a little more time,: Duo said, but he sounded worried.  
  
"I'm afraid that Noin is a little out of touch, Treize doesn't tell his own people much," Po apologized. "It's what she might have observed in the Palace itself that has use to us," she said with a nod to Noin. "I have a slightly broader view. I run an inn on the edge of Oz's territory, so I receive reports from all over, as well as the gossip of travelers. According to my sources, one of you has been running around destroying every base he came across. That is, until several weeks ago, when there was a flare of light in a virtually deserted area in the northern end of Oz. Following that flash of light, the attacks stopped, but there was a sudden increase in the number of Oz soldiers not in uniform in that area. Rumor has it that they recovered something from that area and transported it out, back to the Palace."  
  
"There was a high-level prisoner brought in about a month ago," Noin said thoughtfully. "I didn't see anything, but I heard that it was one of the mages that the King had been looking for. He was installed in the lower dungeons, and I haven't heard anything since."  
  
"That's Quatre," Duo said grimly. "We've already seen him."   
  
"You have? But... how?" Noin asked. Then her eyes narrowed. "Never mind, I've read the prophecies. I know what you're capable of. But why in the world did you leave him down there?"  
  
"He won't leave."  
  
"What?" both women asked in unison. Po stared at them for a second. "We could use a little bit of background here," she said.   
  
Duo glanced at Heero, who nodded after a moment's consideration. Telling them could be dangerous, but they did need these women's help, and they did need some information to work with. While he didn't hold Wufei's automatically low opinion of any woman, he was automatically suspicious of anyone's abilities until they were proven to him.   
  
"OK. It started a couple of months ago, when Quatre went to visit his father. While he was there, Treize attacked, trying to capture them, and killed off half of the people who lived there, including his father."  
  
"The Winner Massacre?" Noin asked. "But it was a bunch of bandits..." she trailed off when she saw Po shaking her head.  
  
"No, that's common knowledge, but it isn't true. I managed to get someone into the Winner household, and they were able to identify some of the bodies of the killers. Definitely Oz soldiers. I didn't know why they were in Winner's house though, or how they were killed," she added. "So the son did it?"  
  
"Yeah. See, after his father was killed, Quatre sort of... went crazy," Duo confessed. "We... we can talk mind to mind, and trust me, it wasn't Quatre in charge over there. It took us a couple of weeks to catch up with him, and Trowa tried to talk him down, so that we could help him."  
  
"Trowa?" Noin asked.  
  
"He's the other one who's missing. He and Quatre were..."  
  
"Lovers?" Po asked, quickly filling in the blanks.  
  
"No, not exactly, but they were in love," Duo explained. "It was really sweet, actually, until Quatre went crazy. Anyway, he was about to wipe out most of Oz's army, but we frightened them away while Trowa went to face Quatre. He used some sort of Earth magic that we can't duplicate to transport the two of them hundreds of miles away. Something happened out there - we heard Quatre scream, and then a presence faded from our minds."  
  
"What?"  
  
"We're linked. Even when we're far apart, we can feel each other. It's supposed to be a defense mechanism so that we know if someone else is in trouble," Duo explained, drawing on the memories of his predecessor. "Anyway, something happened out there, and we felt someone disappear, and we thought that Quatre had killed Trowa. We finally figured out where Treize took Quatre, and we went to see him."  
  
"You said you thought Quatre killed Trowa. He didn't?" Po asked.  
  
"Yeah. It turns out that it was Quatre we felt fading away, he's lost his powers, temporarily at least."  
  
"How is that possible?" Noin asked.  
  
"Look, it's really complicated, but Quat's powers are tied up in his feelings. He's not allowed to hate people, and right now he hates himself, so he's lost his powers. He hates himself because he thinks that he killed Trowa. But we can still feel someone, and it can't be Quatre, so it has to be Trowa. He's alive, somewhere, but he must be unconscious, because we can't talk to him or figure out where he is. So we've got to go find Trowa so we can convince Quatre that he isn't evil incarnate," Duo explained as quickly as he could.   
  
"And Quatre wouldn't leave because he thinks he's evil?" Po asked. "You have quite a problem there. I'll see what I can do about finding him. I haven't heard anything about some of Treize's men keeping an unconscious boy somewhere, but that sort of thing wouldn't be hard to hide. I'll work on it. What does he look like?"  
  
Duo responded by creating a life-sized illusion of Trowa, complete with the bangs that somehow seemed to define him. Half of his face was always hidden, just as he hid so much of what he was feeling. Po didn't respond with any shock at the display of magic, but walked in a slow circle around the image, studying it carefully.  
  
Noin suddenly gasped. "I don't believe it! That's Triton!"  
  
Everyone looked at her. "What?" Duo asked. The name didn't sound familiar.  
  
"Triton! He... he arrived at the Palace a month ago, and he was very sick, but no one except the Hunters or Treize was allowed to see him. A couple weeks ago he got out of bed - he's Une's personal aide now, follows her around everywhere. Everyone's been forbidden to speak to him about mages or anything, but I didn't know he was a mage himself! I heard he's got total amnesia."  
  
Duo exchanged a glance with Heero.   
  
:That would explain why we can't talk to him,: Wufei said quietly, his earlier protests abandoned. :He doesn't know that he can do it. Treize has him completely helpless, and he's purposefully keeping him that way.: He was practically seething with anger.   
  
:Shit, he's practically living on top of Quatre, and neither of them know it,: Duo remarked, disgusted. :I'm going to KILL Treize.:  
  
:Wait,: Heero advised. :Trowa or Quatre might want to do that.:   
  
:Good idea,: Duo said, turning towards the exit.  
  
"Wait! Where are you going?" Relena cried.  
  
"To find Trowa, and get them both out of that hellhole," Duo told her, then arched his back as his wings popped out. Noin's jaw dropped, and even Po looked a little surprised.  
  
"Ah, can't you wait a few weeks? Until I get back into place so they don't know that I was involved?" Noin asked, a little desperately.  
  
"I don't think that's such a good idea," Duo said, and Heero mentally agreed. "You really don't want to be there for what's coming."  
  
------------------------------------  
  
Wufei wasn't sure if he hoped that they ran into Treize or not. He really, really wanted to kill that... man for what he'd done to Quatre and Trowa, and if he ran into him, he would kill him. And Heero had a point, Quatre and Trowa would probably like to kill him themselves. It would probably be best if they didn't run into him, in that case. They flew directly to the top wall of the Palace, cloaked in illusion, and then started wandering through the Palace.   
  
:There's got to be a better way to do this than wandering around,: Duo commented after a half-hour found them no closer to finding Trowa.   
  
:She said that he's acting as Une's personal aide,: Heero said. :Where would she be?:   
  
:Yelling at her troops, probably,: Duo remarked sarcastically.  
  
:Where would they be?: Heero asked.  
  
:Heero, I was being sarcastic. Although that probably is true,: Duo said, reconsidering. :I don't know, outside in the courtyard?:  
  
:Freeze,: Wufei suddenly instructed, flattening himself against the wall. He'd seen what he thought was a familiar face, and they might be in trouble.  
  
For once, Duo didn't question him, and all three of them fell silent as a man walked down the hall. Wufei clearly remembered his face from when he'd been captured, but that wasn't what had first clued him in that something was wrong. A faint aura of magic hung around him, which meant that he had to be one of Treize's Hunters. If he had the right kind of power, he might sense them.   
  
Sure enough, as the man passed them, he stopped walking, turning his head around in confusion. Wufei silently muttered curses on the man's ancestors to the beginning of history while he hoped that Duo had the sense not to try and talk mind-to-mind with the man right here, he'd be sure to sense that. The man stepped a little closer to them and looked straight through Wufei. The man frowned slightly, shook his head with a slight shrug, and then continued down the hall.   
  
They waited for a full minute until they were sure he was gone. :We should have just killed him,: Duo muttered.   
  
Actually, Wufei agreed with him - the man was a dishonorable wretch who'd beaten him when he couldn't fight back - but now was not the time. :Let's go.:   
  
:Holy shit!: Duo suddenly exclaimed as he rounded another corner, and he jumped backwards. In a second Wufei saw why.   
  
Trowa came walking around the corner at a brisk pace, obviously on an errand. He slowed and raised his hands to his forehead as he passed them, then stumbled to a stop, looking around with obvious confusion on his face. It didn't seem right to see that much emotion openly displayed on his face. :What now?: Duo whispered.   
  
Wufei couldn't believe what he was about to say. :Say something to him!: he hissed.   
  
Duo hesitated for a second, then said, :Trowa?:  
  
Trowa's head snapped up. "Who said that?" he asked out loud, looking around.   
  
:Um...: Duo quickly switched to private speech between the three of them. :Quick, where's an empty room?:  
  
:Two doors down on the right,: Heero responded immediately.  
  
:Go down two doors and go into the room on your right, and I'll show you,: Duo told Trowa.   
  
"I... I shouldn't. I'm on an errand for the Lady."  
  
Leave it to Trowa to be reasonable with the voices in his head.   
  
:This is more important.:   
  
Trowa shook his head uncertainly. "I really have to go."  
  
:Trowa, you have to come with us so we can help Quatre.:  
  
Trowa froze again. "Quatre? That name... it sounds so familiar..."   
  
:Yah. Come on, he's in trouble. We'll explain everything as soon as you just go in that room and close the door.:  
  
"We?"   
  
Well, that established that losing his memory hadn't made him any less observant.   
  
:Just come on in, and I'll explain everything.: Privately, Duo muttered, :He's almost as stubborn now as he ever was. If he doesn't come soon I'm going to hit him over the head and drag him into that damn room, heal him, and explain it all when he wakes up.:   
  
:Might work,: Heero conceded.  
  
Luckily for all of them, Trowa decided that the name 'Quatre' was important enough to investigate, and obediently walked over to the door in question, stepped inside, and closed the door behind him. The other three exchanged a glance (which was difficult, while invisible), then opened the door and followed him in. He looked startled when the door opened and closed on it's own, and more so when the three of them suddenly became visible. Surprise and fear were obvious in his one visible eye. "Who... *what* are you?" he asked.  
  
"We're friends of yours," Duo told him.  
  
"I... I can't remember anything," Trowa confessed.   
  
"We know."  
  
"You do?"  
  
"Uh-hu. You're very important, to a lot of people. We can help you get your memory back."  
  
Trowa seemed to consider that for a moment. "Who's Quatre?" he asked suddenly.   
  
"What?" Duo asked, caught off-guard by the sudden topic shift.  
  
"Who is Quatre?" Trowa repeated patiently. "It sounds... so familiar..."  
  
"He's another friend of yours," Duo said quickly. "Well, more than a friend, actually... this is really the sort of thing you should be discussing with him."  
  
"Where is he?"  
  
"In the dungeon."  
  
"The dungeon?! What is he doing there?"  
  
Amazing. He doesn't even know who Quatre is and he's still in love with him, Wufei thought, less disgusted with the entire situation than he'd been when it started. Still protective, too, he observed.  
  
"Look, Trowa, we've already been through this once," Duo said impatiently. "Just let me heal you, then you'll remember everything, and we can cut out the four or five days it would take to explain the entire situation to you. OK?"  
  
Trowa's eye blinked. "You're going to heal me?"   
  
"Yeah."  
  
"How?"  
  
"Look, this falls into the category of things you'll understand once I heal you, OK? Just trust me on this one. You would have before."  
  
Trowa began to look stubborn. "No."  
  
"What?"  
  
"You haven't given me any evidence that you knew me before. You could be... whoever did this to me. You're doing... impossible things. You're not even human. I should leave." He turned to leave.  
  
"How about Quatre?" Wufei asked. It was the one thing that seemed to have gotten a reaction out of him.   
  
Trowa hesitated. "I..." he never got a chance to answer, because Wufei suddenly saw a surge of power from Duo and Trowa dropped to the ground. Duo caught him before he hit his head.   
  
He looked up sheepishly. "I don't want him to remember walking out on Quatre when he comes out of this. This way, no more guilt. I have a feeling the two of them will be doing enough of that as it is."  
  
Heero grunted, and Wufei was mildly surprised as Duo once again showed himself to be more insightful and compassionate than he appeared on the outside.  
  
Duo held a glowing hand over Trowa's head, his brow furrowed in concentration. "This is a little weird," he muttered to himself. "It's not entirely physical, but I think..." he trailed off, but Wufei suddenly saw *something* change in Trowa's aura, and it was definitely a good change. Like popping a dislocated joint back into place.   
"I think..." he started to say, but was cut off when there was suddenly a huge surge of power from Trowa, knocking them all off their feet. Actually, it sort of slammed them into the wall and destroyed most of the furnishings in the room. If they hadn't instinctively shielded, it might have killed them. It also shredded most of Trowa's clothing, which was just as well. Wufei didn't think that it would be a good idea for Quatre to see Trowa in an Oz uniform.   
  
Then Trowa woke up. He immediately sat up and looked around, and the surge disappeared. The other three dropped lightly to the ground. "Remind me never to piss you off," Duo grumbled. "Do you remember everything?"  
  
Trowa's eyes turned vague for a few seconds as he concentrated on healing himself and restoring his memories, then his one visible eye opened wide. "Quatre! Where is he?"  
  
"He's below us, in the dungeon. He thinks he's killed you, and he hates himself, so he's lost his powers," Duo told him.  
  
"Take me to him." Trowa opened his mind, obviously expecting to be given the placement that way so that he could conjure himself there.  
  
"But we've been trying to hide our magic..." Duo trailed off as Trowa's eye narrowed slightly. "Never mind. If they didn't feel that, they'd probably have to be dead anyway. Let's get him out of here." New clothing appeared on Trowa as Duo sent an image of the door to them, and they conjured themselves there. One of the limitations on conjuring yourself to a place (other than the inherent limitation of distance) was that you actually had to see where you were going. They couldn't go directly into the cell because it was pitch black, and they could have very easily gotten lost and never arrived at their destination.   
  
As soon as they appeared, Trowa frowned at the door, which obediently dissolved. There was a low whimper from inside as the little light from the corridor streamed inside, and Trowa actually hesitated. :I can't feel him.:   
  
:He thinks you're dead, and he's lost his powers,: Duo reminded him. Trowa nodded once and stepped inside.  
  
"Quatre?"  
  
There was the clink of chains. "Trowa?" asked a hoarse voice.  
  
Wufei's eyes were beginning to adjust as he stepped inside. Quatre was there, looking just as he had the last time they saw him. Wufei frowned slightly. No, not exactly the same - there were more, not less bruises on his face, causing Wufei to tighten his grip on his sword. He began to hope that the guards who'd done this would come down and try to stop them.   
  
Trowa was standing just a few feet inside the cell, frozen in shock as he stared at Quatre. Quatre, for his part, was shielding his eyes against the feeble light, trying to get a glimpse of Trowa. He rose unsteadily to his feet, still shielding his eyes. After several more seconds he pulled his arm away from his eyes and stared at Trowa, a shocked expression on his face. He took a step forward, then another, and was suddenly jerked up short by the chains around his neck and wrists.   
  
He stumbled, hands going up to the collar around his neck... Then he suddenly covered his ears with both hands and retreated back to the wall. "Go away!" he shouted, voice hoarse. "You're not real! You can't be real! I killed you! Leave me alone!"  
  
His hysterical words seemed to break Trowa out of whatever trance he was in. He took several quick steps forward and gripped the collar, which crumbled under his fingers, then embraced Quatre fiercely. For several seconds Quatre didn't respond, he just stood there, shaking his head, a pained expression on his face. "It can't be real, can it?" Quatre asked out loud, but Wufei didn't think he was talking to anyone. "Trowa?" he continued, looking at Trowa's face. He tried to lift a hand to touch him, but the chain was tangled around something and he couldn't move his arm enough. "I killed you."  
  
"I'm alive," Trowa said softly, holding Quatre's face with his hands, forcing Quatre to continue looking up at him.  
  
"No, you can't be... I've seen you so many times... but I could never touch you..." Quatre whispered, trying to raise his hands again. Wufei felt something stirring in the back of his mind. Quatre's hands got caught by the chains again. "But you're touching me..." The presence in the back of his mind grew stronger as Quatre pressed his cheek against Trowa's chest. "You're real..."  
  
Wufei sucked in his breath through his teeth as Quatre suddenly exploded with power, his magic flaring around him like a miniature sun.   
  
"Get these things off me!" Quatre demanded angrily, pulling at the chains around his wrists. Suddenly they exploded outward in all directions with a flare of power that was visible even to normal eyes. Wufei threw up a shield and felt several pieces impact against it.   
  
Trowa, much closer to the source, didn't have time to shield and grunted as one of the pieces hit him and opened up a cut on his thigh.   
  
"Oh gods!" Quatre exclaimed, nearly hysterical again. "I'm hurting you again!" He immediately bent down and healed the minor cut.   
  
"Quatre," Trowa said gently with a hint of a smile on his face.  
  
"I'm so sorry! I... it's all my fault! I..."  
  
"Quatre."  
  
"You should just stay away from me! I'm dangerous..."  
  
He sounds like Duo, Wufei observed, watching the strange interaction.  
  
"Quatre!"  
  
Quatre finally stopped babbling and looked at Trowa again. "What?"  
  
"Are you all right?"   
  
Quatre stared at him. "My... my eyes hurt. And I'm tired. They... they didn't give me very much food."  
  
Trowa gave him sharp glance. "That's all that hurts?" he said, a hint of doubt in his voice.  
  
Quatre actually blushed. "No, that's not all. They... every day they came in... it's not really their fault, they were angry because I killed a bunch of them and destroyed all those bases..."  
  
Unbelievable. He was defending the people who'd been beating him every day while he was in this hellhole. Wufei felt like taking Quatre by the shoulders and shaking some sense into him.   
  
:Well, it's good to know he hasn't changed much,: Duo commented. :Ah, I hear something. Me and Hee-chan will go out and make sure that they aren't interrupted. Keep an eye on them?:  
  
Wufei wanted to demand to know what he expected him to do, but decided it wasn't worth the effort. It rarely was, with Duo. :Fine.:  
  
Trowa's hands moved swiftly over Quatre's body, finally resting on Quatre's cheeks, wiping away the bruises. "Better?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, thank you," Quatre responded.  
  
"Now we're even."  
  
"Even? Trowa... after what I did to you..." Quatre sounded horrified. Now started the guilt exchanging that Duo had predicted.  
  
"I wasn't there for you," Trowa responded.   
  
"But that was my fault!" Quatre protested. "You lost your memories! And you had to spend time with Une!" He wrinkled his nose in distaste. It appeared that he had already fallen back into the habit of unconsciously picking up basic information from their minds.  
  
Trowa smiled slightly. "She was actually quite kind to me, under the circumstances. The only complaint I have is that she kept me away from you."  
  
Quatre dug his nose into the base of Trowa's throat, and Trowa rested his chin on the top of his head. "I'm so sorry," Quatre murmured out loud. The two of them were silent (at least out loud) for several minutes, but Wufei was aware that they were having a very involved discussion mind-to-mind. Wufei stared at the wall and tried not to intrude on what was obviously something very personal.   
  
Despite himself, he found himself glancing at them every couple of seconds, then mentally scolding himself for his lack of discipline. But no sooner did he finish scolding himself than he found himself glancing at them again. What was wrong with him?!   
  
You're jealous. Wufei froze as the thought occurred to him. Impossible. Crazy. Insane. And true. Wufei began mentally reciting all the curses that he knew of. He couldn't be jealous of those two, it was impossible. Damn it, he considered both of them to be his friends, but he wasn't interested in either of them in any other form. So where was this infernal jealously coming from?   
  
It's not that you want to be with either of them, you're just jealous about what they have together. You want someone to care for you like that, his interfering brain told him. But again, it was true. Duo and Heero had gotten together for reasons beyond his understanding, and the attraction between Quatre and Trowa had been obvious even when they were still in captivity. But if something happened to him, would anyone care that much?   
  
The others would be upset, he was sure of that, but he was equally certain that Quatre wouldn't try to drive himself insane as punishment if Wufei was hurt. That was the truth, and in a way, it hurt.   
  
Wufei steeled himself against such emotions. They were unworthy of himself or the others. He'd just come to that decision when Quatre and Trowa finally came to an agreement, whatever it was. "I'm fine, really," Quatre insisted.  
  
"You need real food," Trowa said firmly.  
  
"I'm fine," Quatre repeated, getting a stubborn look on his face. He took one step towards the door and almost fell. Trowa caught him and in the next second swung him up into his arms. "Trowa! Put me down!" Quatre shouted.  
  
"You can't walk."  
  
"I can so."  
  
Trowa nearly dropped Quatre on his feet, then caught him again as his legs collapsed out from under him. He gave Quatre a look.   
  
"Just... just give me some energy and I'll be fine," Quatre repeated stubbornly.   
  
Trowa raised an eyebrow, but Wufei saw him cast some of his energy at Quatre, who effortlessly caught it. "OK..." Quatre said slowly. "Just put me back down on the floor. Slowly this time," he added.   
  
Trowa silently obeyed, and this time, Quatre stayed on his feet. "All right - I'm good now." He took several careful steps forward, Trowa less than a step behind him, ready to catch him if he fell. "Let's just get out of here."  
  
Trowa asked, "Treize?" There was definite anger in his voice, and Quatre's expression darkened.   
  
"Yes. We need to deal with him before we leave." There was a terrible note of finality in his voice, something that seemed horribly out of place coming from Quatre.   
  
Wufei preceded them out of the cell, but stopped short when he almost tripped over a body in the hall. A dead body. Duo was leaning against the wall, humming happily to himself, and Heero was crouched over one of the *six* dead bodies cluttering the hall. Wufei looked at them. "I didn't feel anything," he remarked.  
  
"Well, we thought it would be best to do it the old fashioned way," Duo remarked cheerfully. "They do know we're somewhere in the palace. We figured this way they wouldn't be able to pinpoint our presence right away. Of course, I don't know why we bothered, seeing how you people were just tossing energy around in there." His tone became less jaunty and more concerned. "How you doing, Q?"   
  
"Much better," Quatre told him. "I'm sorry I caused so much trouble."   
  
"No problem," Duo said with a shrug. "Just glad the two of your are back. I've had no one to talk to for weeks."  
  
Wufei looked over at Heero, who was attempting to clean one of his three-sided blades on the guard's clothes. He gave both the knife and body a look of disgust when he realized that the knife wasn't getting any cleaner, due to the amount of sweat and grime on the guard's uniform.   
  
"What now?" Duo asked.  
  
"I..." Quatre exchanged a glance with Trowa. His voice suddenly turned stoney. "We want to find Treize, first. He has to pay for what he did to Tro... us. And father." His voice turned sad towards the end. "Then I want a long bath and some food," he finished plaintively.  
  
"Oh. So if it doesn't matter if they know where we are..." Duo trailed off and made a gesture towards the cell, which suddenly imploded. They all shielded themselves as the walls collapsed inward, pulling down a good portion of the ceiling as well as the supports were destroyed. After a few seconds, the din he'd made died down to an uneasy silence. Wufei could barely see anything in the dust cloud that Duo had raised, but around their feet were several large blocks of stone that would have crushed them if they hadn't shielded.  
  
"Ah, Duo?" Quatre said into the silence, then coughed.  
  
:Yeah, Q?: Duo said, sounding a little shaken by what he'd accidentally caused. He'd definitely wanted to destroy that cell, but the four cells around it and the ones above it had been an accident. It was a good thing they'd been uninhabited.  
  
:Do you know anything about physics?:  
  
:What?:  
  
:Calculating trajectories with a catapult and aiming for the weakest part of a wall or building to destroy it?:  
  
:Ah, no.:  
  
:And your predecessor didn't, either?:  
  
:Not that I know of,: Duo said after he quickly checked.  
  
:Remind me to give you a lesson later.:  
  
:Check. So what do you say we go find the son-of-a-bitch?:  
  
:Duo?:  
  
:Yeah, Q?:  
  
:I knew his mother, before she died. She was a sweet old woman.:  
  
:Quatre... just say yes.:  
  
  
  
  
  
Well, I was going to go a little farther with this file, but it's long enough as it is. So I'll get to the big revelation scene in the next chapter. (No, it's not the end - sorry to raise your hopes.) But you do get to find out why I called this story Prophecies (beyond the obvious - I did have an ulterior motive).   
  



	13. Part 12

Duo hadn't really appreciated how powerful they really were in comparison to normal humans before. They'd never really tried to fight them using their powers, using illusions to either frighten them off or running themselves. As the five of them sort of plowed their way through the palace, he realized that there was absolutely nothing that any of the normal humans could do to stop them. Magic could counteract almost any weapon that Duo had ever seen, and it even made poisoning them difficult, if they'd been stupid enough to accept food from the Oz soldiers, which didn't look as if it was going to happen, based on how the soldiers kept running at them with weapons drawn.  
  
Quatre sort of shoved his way through them, blocking any attempts at attacking him with a basic shield and then overwhelming their minds with sheer power. Even so, Duo did notice that that Quatre hadn't actually killed anyone yet. Still Quatre, even after all of that. The sheer ease with which Quatre was dealing with most of the guards in Treize's palace was kinda mind-boggling, though.   
  
And it made Duo uneasy. He didn't think that anyone should have that kind of power, much less a half-crazy faery like him. Sure, Heero was helping him with that, as much as he could be helped, but look what had happened to Quatre, who was definitely the most 'normal' of them all, and probably the most stable, too.   
  
:Don't be so certain,: Heero told him quietly.   
  
:What?:  
  
:Quatre's got problems of his own, or he wouldn't have gone crazy,: Heero pointed out.   
  
:You know, that's what I love about you, Hee-chan,: Duo said, wrapping an arm around Heero's waist, not caring if anyone saw him. Actually, there was no one conscious to see him, so it wasn't much of a problem. :You're so friendly.:  
  
Heero made a show of grumbling and gave Duo's braid a slight tug, but it was gentle, and Duo could feel that he was satisfied with himself.   
  
:But that doesn't change the fact that I'm a murdering, half-crazy mage,: Duo continued. :Even if I didn't use my powers most of the time, I'm still not exactly the sort of person who should be trusted with powers like ours. Wow, I think Quatre's beginning to get a little irritated,: he commented, watching as one of the guards went flying through the air before he collided with a wall and collapsed.   
  
:They should have figured out by now that that isn't going to work,: Heero said disapprovingly, watching as Trowa placed a hand on Quatre's shoulder, raised the other to the hall, and suddenly the stone floor opened up, and all of the soldiers waiting for them fell through. A few seconds later the stone was back in place (minus the rugs) and they walked through the rest of the hall unmolested. :And you are a good person to have the power,: Heero told him.  
  
:What?!:  
  
:Baka,: Heero muttered.  
  
:You've been spending too much time with Wufei,: Duo observed. :And what the hell are you talking about? Giving the power to someone who killed his best friend wasn't exactly a brilliant move on destiny's part.:   
  
:You didn't know. You've never intentionally hurt anyone using your powers, have you?:  
  
:No.:  
  
:Have you ever used your powers to gain advantage for yourself?:  
  
:Not until I met you guys.:  
  
:If we survive, will you use your powers to make yourself wealthy or hurt other people?:  
  
:Of course not!:  
  
:And you don't think that others wouldn't?:   
  
The question made Duo pause. Would others do that? He couldn't... wouldn't ever... It was more than just what had happened to Solo, although that was a large part - he just couldn't picture himself using the power that way - it wasn't right. It was as simple as that - his powers weren't supposed to be used that way. Would someone else see it differently?  
  
:None of us used our powers to help ourselves aside from a bit of healing. Most people wouldn't be that scrupulous.:  
  
:I guess so.:  
  
:Between the five of us, we have enough power to completely destroy the world, or to take it. What would Treize do if he had the power?:  
  
Duo shuddered. :He'd probably use it to take over the entire world. No one would stand a chance against him.:  
  
:Or against us.:  
  
:Yeah, I see what you mean. There are a lot of assholes out there that I wouldn't want to give that sort of power to. But that doesn't mean that I'm anyone's first choice, either.:   
  
:Duo,: Heero said, getting that stubborn look on his face. Duo could tell, his lips tightened a tiny bit, and tiny little creases appeared around the corners of his eyes. Yup, definitely in stubborn mode. :You were given the power because you were the best for it. So was I. So were all of us, because we wouldn't use it that way, even though we could, and because we are willing to risk our lives, even though we don't have to. You should have the power. You wouldn't be you without it. Baka.: Heero gave his braid one last tug.  
  
Duo stared at him. I think that's the single longest statement I've ever heard from him when it wasn't required, Duo found himself thinking, then shook himself out of it. If Heero really believed that he was the best person to have the power, even if he was half-crazy, maybe there was some truth to it. Heero gave him a smug smile.  
  
They ascended another flight of stairs, and entered another hallway full of guards and soldiers. Are they funneling their entire army into these stupid halls? Duo wondered, then asked, :Hey, Q? You want me to take some of them for a while?:  
  
:That's quite all right, I can handle this,: Quatre said primly, and Duo sighed. He was beginning to understand that Quatre used politeness as a mask just as often as Duo used acting like an idiot. He thought acting like an idiot was more fun, but to each his own. Anyway, that meant that Quatre was still very angry, or hurt, or something, but wasn't ready to let the rest of them know.   
  
:Are you sure? I'm getting a little bored back here.:  
  
:Well, if you really want to...:  
  
Duo sighed. He couldn't believe that Quatre was prepared to be polite over which of them was going to beat up the guards as they stormed the enemy's palace. :No, that's OK. I bet you have a lot of aggression to work off, anyway. Keep at it, you're doing fine.:  
  
:Thank you,: Quatre replied, then Duo felt some sort of effort from him, and every one of the guards dropped unconscious. Definitely getting irritated.  
  
:This might be easier if you just knocked out everyone in the palace and let them sort it out later,: Duo suggested.   
  
:Good idea,: Quatre murmured, and Duo felt another wave of power come out from him. Suddenly the entire palace was unnaturally silent. :Let's get this over with.:  
  
:We don't have to, if you don't want,: Trowa said softly, but Duo caught the comment.  
  
Quatre pulled himself upright, straightening his shoulders. :No. He's done too much. He's gone too far. We... I have to end this.:  
  
:We're here with you,: Duo told him.   
  
:Thank you,: Quatre said softly.   
  
They continued up three more levels without any interference from anyone, all the way straight to Treize's personal quarters. Suddenly there was a woman with glasses and her hair done in severe buns standing in front of them. She was dressed in pants, and both carried a crossbow and held up a glowing hand. "Stop," she said in a cold voice. "I cannot allow you to harm King Treize."   
  
:Who is she?: Duo asked the group.  
  
:Lady Une. She's a Hunter, and one of Treize's top aides,: Trowa said, his mental voice sounding strained. :She's the one who captured me the first time... and she took care of me when I had no memory.:   
  
Duo grimaced. :What do you want to do?:   
  
"Lady, you were kind to me when I had no memory, and for that I am grateful," Trowa said out loud. "But you also hurt Quatre, and kept me from him, and I can't forgive that. This one time I will let you go. If I see you again, I'll kill you."  
  
Her lips tightened into a thin line and she didn't move.   
  
"Hey lady, you don't stand a chance against us," Duo said. "Just get out of here."  
  
"I will not allow you to reach Treize," she repeated. Trowa made a slight motion with his hand, and she vanished. Duo traced the magic signature down to the dungeon right near where they'd found Quatre.   
  
:It should take her some time to get back up here,: Trowa remarked quietly.   
  
"Good," Quatre said out loud, his face expressionless. "Lets get this over with." He pushed open the door to Treize's study and stepped inside. The others immediately followed him, with Trowa barely a step behind, on hand on Quatre's wrist, ready to provide support, either emotional or magical, if he needed it.   
  
Treize looked just the way Duo remembered him from that one short meeting all those months ago. Cool, composed... it still made Duo want to rip his face off. He sat behind his desk, an unconcerned expression on his face, but Duo could feel his... well, it wasn't quite fear, exactly, but he was nervous, at least.   
  
Quatre took another step into the room and stopped, staring at Treize, his face outwardly composed, although Duo could feel the tension radiating off him in waves. He was so tense that Duo was surprised that he wasn't vibrating.  
  
"So they found him," Treize said calmly, looking at Trowa.  
  
"It was only a matter of time," Quatre replied in the exact same tone of voice. "We're linked by our magic. The only reason that your trick lasted as long as it did was because I lost my magic, and they thought that was because of his death. Once they found out that it was me they weren't sensing, they knew he was alive, and then they found him." Quatre paused for a moment, then continued, "Why did you do it? You could have endangered the entire world."  
  
"So you do know what is coming," Treize murmured.   
  
"And so do you. So how could you do it, knowing everything that was at stake?"  
  
"But that's why I had to do it," Treize said quietly. "This will be the greatest battle in over a thousand years of man's history. I am given to understand that after this battle, mages such as yourselves will become common, and my kind - the weak mages now known as faeries - will disappear. After the battle, we will be inconsequential. This is the only chance I have to participate."   
  
"All of this... you did all of this, killed my father, killed my people, hurt me, hurt Trowa... so you could participate in a war?!" Quatre demanded, a horrified expression on his face.  
  
"Destiny," Treize corrected.   
  
"You were wrong," Quatre said, his voice taking on a bit of a chill. "It may not seem that way to you, but there are more important things for you than the defense of this world - like the lives of your people. It's our destiny to fight for this world, not yours."  
  
"And if you kill me, what will happen to my people..."  
  
"There's a war coming - they need a leader who will protect them, not who is off chasing destiny," Quatre cut him off. "This is the second time you've ordered your men to attack your own people - the first time was when you turned everyone against us mages, and the second time was at my home. You don't care what happens to the people."  
  
Now Treize began to look a little upset, but Duo was more interested in the power building up in Quatre. "That's not fair," Treize stated. "What about you? If you were truly interested in the welfare of your people, you would have remained hidden. You knew you could do more for them as heir than as a faery, but you chose to save one child instead. What is one child compared to an entire province?"  
  
:Asshole!: Duo hissed to Heero. :How can he compare Quatre saving someone's life with him taking ours away?!:  
  
"Everything," Quatre said softly. "And it had to happen, or I would never have met them," he gestured to the others. "It's been planned for a millennia, and you're not included in that plan."  
  
"Better to die like this than live in obscurity," Treize replied calmly, standing up and removing the pendant that made him look completely human.  
  
Duo felt the power in Quatre rise to a crescendo as he raised a glowing hand, clenched it into a fist, and then made a gesture towards Treize. Duo shielded his eyes as the power washed over all of them, then he felt shock from Quatre... opened them... Treize was still standing there, watching Quatre. Quatre tilted his head slightly, looking at Treize, his hand still poised to strike... why had he pulled the blow?  
  
Suddenly Quatre's eyes opened wide, and he took a step back, partially covering his face with his hand. Duo saw horror there, just as he gasped, "By the gods... oh no!" He turned his head away, as if he couldn't bear to look at Treize.   
  
:Quatre, what's wrong?: Duo actually beat Trowa in asking that question.  
:He... I... oh gods...: Quatre repeated, then took a deep breath and backed up another step, never taking his eyes off of Treize, who looked as puzzled by his behavior as everyone else. :We're leaving,: he said shortly. The panic was gone, but not the shock and horror.  
  
"What?" Duo asked, so surprised he reverted to physical speech. "Are you sure you don't want to kill him?"  
  
Quatre shook his head emphatically. :We can't. We have to leave now,: he insisted.  
Trowa reached out to touch Quatre, who shook off his hand. :I'm fine, really, but we have to leave now, before it's too late.:  
  
Suddenly Wufei stiffened and muttered a curse in his own language. :He's right. We must leave.: He turned and headed out the door.  
  
"Wait, what's going on!" Treize demanded, looking frustrated. For once Duo knew how he felt.  
  
"I'm sorry," Quatre said in a half-whisper, looking at Treize.   
  
"You can't leave like this..." Treize protested.  
  
Quatre bit his lip and shook his head, still backing towards the door. "Be careful what you wish for," he murmured, and then turned and fled, Trowa on his heels.   
  
Duo turned to look at Heero, who was looking at Treize. After a few seconds, he shook his head slightly, looked at Duo and raised his shoulders an eighth of an inch, his version of a shrug.   
  
:Come on!: Quatre said, his voice urgent.   
  
Duo shrugged himself, then the two of them went to join the others. Quatre had a whole lot of explaining to do.  
  
--------------------------------------  
  
"All right, Quatre, now what was that?" Duo asked a few minutes later. Quatre had hustled them to the nearest window and jumped out before he even popped out his wings. Duo's heart had nearly jumped out of his mouth, and he was quite certain that he'd never seen that expression on Trowa's face before. A few seconds later Quatre had risen back up to window level, looking at them and demanding to know when they were coming. They'd all popped their wings out and then followed him.  
  
He'd led them at top speed north, away from the Palace, and then finally landed just outside the city gates before landing, ignoring the stares that they were getting. He didn't bother to hide his wings, either.   
  
"And shouldn't we be hiding, or something?" Duo asked, glancing at a couple of travelers who'd stopped to stare at them. Heero glared at them, and they decided that they had pressing business elsewhere.   
  
"It doesn't matter, now," Quatre said. "It's almost time. We've got to get moving."  
  
"All right, Quatre, slow down. First you have to explain what just happened, and what the hell you're talking about. Why did you pull the blow and let Treize go?"  
  
Quatre stared at him. "You didn't feel it? I didn't pull the blow."  
  
Duo stared at him. "What?" he asked blankly. "That' s impossible, if you didn't pull it, it should have flattened him..."  
  
"I didn't, and it should have," Quatre said, shaking his head.   
  
"But how..."  
  
"It's him, he's the enemy," Quatre said. "But he doesn't know it yet."   
  
"What?"  
  
"The enemy. Don't you remember? Except for the demons they send across the enemy operates almost entirely through humans - mages - from our world?" Quatre asked, his voice rising with every word. "They've chosen Treize, and he doesn't know it yet, and they're protecting him. It's good planning, on their part, actually - he's got enormous resources, dozens of mages, and thousands of soldiers that the demons can possess and throw at us."  
  
"So why did we have to get out of there so fast?"  
  
Quatre shook his head again. "I just made the situation worse. Again," he said, shame-faced.   
  
"How?" Heero asked before Duo could come up with anything to respond to that.  
  
"He doesn't know, not yet. But he's going to figure out - soon - that I didn't pull the blow, and then he's going to figure out how much power he really has, and then it's over," Quatre said, looking sad. "It's like possession - it's probably been creeping up on him for a long time - the Treize I remember as a child would never have ordered the imprisonment of the faeries, or the attack on my home. He was cool, sometimes, but never that cruel. When he realizes... they'll take over completely. They'll probably take over most of his staff, too, and his soldiers during battles..." Quatre shuddered. "We're going to have to fight most of Oz's army to get to him. And he's the one we have to kill." He looked even sadder at that.  
  
"Woah, if we have to kill him, why didn't you just kill him?" Duo asked.  
  
"I couldn't. The possession isn't complete yet. They were protecting him, anyway. We need to wait until the possession is complete before we strike. Don't you remember, our predecessors tried that, before the possession was complete, but all they did was kill the human host and then the demons chose another."  
  
Duo paused to access the memories Thantos had given him, and he could feel the others doing the same. "You're right," Duo said after a minute. "Shit. All this time sneaking around, and it turns out Treize was it all the time? So how long do we have until he figures it out and they take over?"  
  
"A few weeks. Maybe. He's not dumb. That's why we have to hurry."  
  
"Hurry? Where?"  
  
"We're going to head to the border of Sank. Do you think you can find that woman... Po, was her name?" he asked. "She said that she had a lodge on the edge of Oz's territory, right? We'll go there first."  
  
"First?"  
  
"I think it would be best if we pulled back to the fort down in the Southern Desert - the Manganacs will provide some physical protection, and there's less there to destroy. We don't need to turn all of Oz into another wasteland."   
  
Duo felt as if he was missing at least half of this conversation, and switched to the often-more-clear mental communication. :All right Quatre. Slowly now. Why are we going to see her, and why would we go to the Southern Desert?: he asked silently.  
  
:There's going to be a war: us versus Treize and all of his people. We're more powerful, but he's got a lot more people. We're going to her to tell her what's going on, to get her people to pull out, if they can, or they'll get caught up in this. She can also inform Relena of what's going on. We can also collect all of the mages in Sank and bring them back with us. We'll collect the mages from Oz as we travel south, and then hole up in the fort down there. That ought to protect us from physical attacks, and we can concentrate on defeating the magical ones. Got it?:  
  
:The other mages?: Wufei sounded surprised.  
  
:Yes, of course, that's why we were captured in the first place, so I could meet them,: Quatre said, once again disregarding logic. :I've already sent out word - they know what's happening, and will start moving towards the main road, so we can pick them up as we move. We're going to have to move fast,: he mused to himself. :Trowa, that spell you used to transport us, can you use that to move many people down to the base at once?:  
  
:Possibly, if we can get a big group of them together...: Trowa said slowly, his eyes narrowing. :There's a nexus of energy a few hours walk from the base - I can send them there, and they'll have to walk the rest of the way.:  
  
:Good. We'll have to stop at my home for supplies for a siege,: Quatre said, then faltered. :Iria... was all right?: he asked haltingly.   
  
:She was fine, last we saw her,: Duo assured him. :Last we saw her, she'd gathered all the survivors together to hold the place until your soldiers could arrive. We healed all of the wounded, too.:  
  
Quatre visibly flinched when he mentioned survivors, but nodded gratefully when he finished. :Then she'll be all right, at least for now. I hope they have enough supplies...:  
  
:If they don't, we can magic them,: Duo said.  
  
:If we have enough magic to spare,: Heero said grimly.   
  
They all fell silent, sifting through their predecessor's memories of the utter exhaustion they'd felt near the end of the war, when they barely had enough energy to move, let alone fight, and their power was the only thing sustaining them. They'd had none to spare then.  
  
:We'll just have to make sure that doesn't happen,: Quatre said firmly.   
  
:Wait, are you sure that you're all right?: Duo asked as Quatre spread his wings and prepared to take off again. :I mean, have you eaten in the last couple of days?:  
  
:My power will sustain me until we get to the border,: Quatre assured them, and Duo noticed that he avoided actually answering the question. :I'll get some food there.:   
  
Duo frowned, remembering that incident back in Sank when they'd first managed to successfully combine their powers when Quatre hadn't told anyone about how exhausted he actually was and had ended up getting himself knocked unconscious. He was about to mention it when he heard a whisper of communication between Quatre and Trowa, and Quatre paled slightly. "I'm fine," he insisted. "I'm not going to burn myself out, I promise."  
  
Trowa raised one eyebrow, and Quatre blushed slightly.  
  
"I will eat when we get there, and then I will sleep," he said coaxingly, opening his eyes a little wider. Manipulative little thing, Duo observed as he watched Trowa's reaction to that (the lowering of said eyebrow), and felt Heero's slight amusement and agreement with that statement. "I'll be very careful, I promise, but we don't have any time to waste."  
  
"Burnout?" Trowa asked quietly, putting a wealth of questions into that one word. Duo had noticed that he seemed to have made an art form of that practice. Even Heero tended to use two or three words when he grunted his replies. He wondered if Trowa talked more when he and Quatre were alone.   
  
"I know we can't afford to have me burn out right now," Quatre responded. "But I won't, and if we don't get up there right away, it won't matter if I burn out or not. We need to get there now. I promise I'll rest when we get there."  
  
Duo glanced first at Heero, then at Trowa.   
  
:I'll keep an eye on him,: Trowa said silently.  
  
"Ah, guys? Remember, I can hear all that stuff," Quatre said hesitantly. "Sorry, but I can't help it."  
  
"I remember," Trowa said calmly, and Quatre flushed again.   
  
"Oh. Well, can we go then?" Quatre asked, looking at Trowa, obviously seeking his permission. That was something Duo didn't remember seeing before, and wondered if they'd done this before in private or if something had changed because of what had happened to them. He found himself hoping that it was the former.   
  
Trowa's lips twitched upwards, and Quatre beamed at him before becoming serious again. He spread his wings and slowly rose into the air. "Come on," he called, and suddenly took off.   
  
:Quick little bugger,: Duo remarked, but the only response he got was a grunt from Heero and silence from the other two as they struggled to catch up. Except for Wufei, they all had somewhat 'normal' wings, so they actually had to work to fly, whereas the other two just sort of moved.   
  
Whatever weakness Quatre was feeling because of his imprisonment was not readily apparent as he flew, obviously determined to reach the edge of Oz before sunset. Duo was about to shake his head at the urgency that Quatre was practically radiating, when he realized that he felt the same urgency himself. They all felt it - Trowa had to, or he would never have let Quatre exert himself like this. For a moment he was transported back to the dream they'd shared, all those months ago, back in the compound when they were Treize's prisoners.   
  
Now the urgency they all felt was real, and the battle was coming... in the dream - nightmare, really - they'd been too late.  
  
That wasn't going to happen this time.  
  
--------------------------------------  
  
They did make it to the border of Oz before sunset, where Quatre promptly broke his promise to eat something. He was too busy explaining the situation to Sally Po, who was remarkably quick in getting over her shock and moving on to actually being useful. She immediately pulled out a map and told them where the concentration of Oz's forces were, at least in the last few weeks.   
  
"Miss Po," Quatre said after a long while. "You have to pull all of your people out of Oz."   
  
Sally stared at him. "I can't do that."  
  
Quatre shook his head emphatically. "You don't understand. Any of them that are actually working for Treize... if they stay, they won't be your people any more. The demons are going to take over his forces, and once they take one of your people, they'll know about your entire network, or at least as much as that person knows, and they'll work through it as quickly as they can."  
  
Sally stared at him some more. "Possessed?"  
  
"Yes. They're not going to be in charge of their own bodies anymore. They'll be like... puppets, dolls... not really even people anymore." Quatre's expressive face revealed deep sorrow.   
  
Sally paled slightly. "I'll send out the orders immediately," she said, rising and walking back out into the main room.   
  
Heero glanced around the room, testing the atmosphere. Quatre looked exhausted, which was no surprise, under the circumstances, and Trowa was a hair away from putting Quatre to sleep using his power. Actually, Duo was pretty close to doing the same thing, and had been shooting Quatre dirty looks for the past hour, especially after Quatre started yawning, politely excusing himself each time. Wufei had withdrawn into the corner as soon as they arrived and hadn't said anything, content with muttering and grunting to himself. Heero didn't care enough to ask what it was, but he'd seen Wufei mouth the word 'onna' more than once, and given the way he was glaring at Sally, it didn't take a genius to figure out what was the problem.  
  
Heero had been cautiously impressed by her apparent competence and skill when they'd arrived. She'd taken one look at them as they walked into the front room of her lodge, cloaked in illusions to make them look human, and told an assistant to take over for her, immediately ushering them into a back room and closing the door. It appeared to be some sort of office, but Heero's sharp eyes had immediately picked out several discrepancies - things that should not have been in the office of a woman who ran an inn. Like the sword carefully hidden under the table, strapped to the underside, invisible unless you knew what to be looking for. There were also far too many maps visible, carefully stored away and labeled, but with no good reason to be there. He also thought he saw a number of other weapons hidden around the room, but they were well concealed.   
  
Sally apparently noticed his eyes resting on the concealed sword, because she smiled apologetically. "It's not great, but I don't let many people back here, anyway, and those that do - the ones who notice - just think I'm paranoid."  
  
She'd also correctly identified them all by their full names as soon as they were in her office and didn't ask any stupid questions about how they'd gotten here so quickly. She listened to the entire story and Quatre's plans without interrupting, and then produced those maps. And the entire time she patiently ignored Wufei glaring at her, Trowa's blank gaze, Duo's barely-hidden skepticism, and his own intense gaze. Maybe she could be useful.  
  
She had told them one piece of interesting, if not useful, information. She had more access to the prophecies that Treize had been obsessing about than they did, and told them that Treize was usually called the Seeker. It was just as Quatre had said - he was looking for destiny, and it was going to find him.   
  
A few minutes later she reappeared carrying a large tray with several plates of food on it. She set it down on her desk. "I've already sent word, but I'm actually going to have to travel through some parts of Oz to recall some of them," she reported. "And you're welcome to stay here as long as you need, although I agree with you that speed key right now."  
  
Quatre nodded, then glanced at the tray. "What's that?"  
  
"Dinner. I apologize, but if you don't mind me saying so, you look terrible," Sally said honestly. Quatre jumped slightly and shot a guilty glance at Trowa, who raised his eyebrow. The corner of his lip twitched upwards, too.  
  
"Ah, thank you," Quatre said, immediately picking up one the plates and carefully taking a bite of the bread she'd provided. "It's kind of you to notice."  
  
"Sorry, kid, but I have to be honest - you'd have to be half-blind not to notice," Sally said, and Wufei snorted and muttered something under his breath.  
  
:Did I just hear Wufei complaining about someone being rude?: Duo asked with a grin as he took a big bite of the meat on his plate. The result was rather disgusting, as Duo had known it would be.  
  
:Baka,: Heero muttered before getting a plate himself.   
  
Trowa also retrieved a plate for himself, but Wufei showed no signs of coming out of his corner. Sally apparently noticed. "You want this?" she asked, gesturing to the plate but making no move to carry it to him.   
  
:Good for her,: Duo remarked, his mouth full. As Wufei had once complained right after they gained the ability to speak mind-to-mind, having food in his mouth was no longer an obstacle to Duo's talking. Of course, it wasn't much of an obstacle before. :What's his problem anyway?:   
  
Heero let his silence speak for him. He didn't know why Wufei had a prejudice against any women, but suspected that it had something to do with his deceased wife. From what little Wufei had told him, Meiran had emphatically not been weak, maybe he was comparing all other women to the memory of his wife.   
  
Duo snorted, not at Heero's thoughts, which he'd been careful to keep masked for Wufei's privacy (what little he knew had been told in confidence, and he wasn't about to break that), but at Heero's silence, which he took to mean that Heero didn't know. He made a lot of assumptions like that, sometimes. Then he levitated the plate using his magic and floated it over to Wufei. :Come on, Wuffie,: he coaxed, using a name that he knew Wufei hated. :It's not going to kill you just because it was made by a woman. Most food is, actually.:   
  
Wufei growled something intelligible, but he did snatch the dish out of the air and started eating, shooting a positively poisonous glare at Duo.  
  
:Wufei,: Heero said warningly.   
  
Wufei's eyes met his for a brief instant, and he saw something like apology in them for a moment before it disappeared. Wufei inclined his head ever so slightly in Heero's direction, then resumed eating, this time without glaring at Duo.  
  
Quatre finished his food very quickly. Sally had been carefully studying him as he ate, and when he finished, she asked, "Were they starving you?"  
  
Quatre's head snapped up before he could control his reaction. "What?"   
  
"I am a bit of a healer. Not like you guys, but I know something about herbal healing, and I know how to diagnose people. Have you eaten recently?"  
  
"I'll be fine," Quatre said with a nervous glance at Trowa, whose visible eye narrowed slightly, then narrowed further, and Quatre suddenly jumped to his feet. "I... I think I'd like to go to sleep now," he said in what was probably the most awkward attempt at grace that Heero had ever seen Quatre make.  
  
Sally looked more than a little confused, but nodded towards the door. "I've had my people prepare a room, go upstairs, it's the third one on the right."  
  
"Thank you very much," Quatre said as Trowa also stood up, placed a hand around Quatre's shoulder, and guided him towards the door. Heero saw Quatre lean his head against Trowa's shoulder just before they disappeared from view.  
  
:Awe, isn't that cute?: Duo remarked. :You think they're ever actually going to become lovers, or are they just going to think about it forever?:  
  
:Duo!: Wufei exclaimed, sounding horrified.   
  
"That's the first time someone's ever taken my advice so seriously," Sally remarked, a puzzled frown on her face, and Duo burst out laughing.   
  
"Sorry, but that wasn't you. I think Trowa finally put his foot down," Duo told her. "Quat has this nasty habit of not telling anyone when he's not feeling well, and I think Tro's getting a little tired of it."  
  
"Oh." Sally apparently decided to accept that statement at face value. "Well, as I said before, you're welcome to stay for as long as you want. The two rooms next to the one they're in are also yours."  
  
As Duo started to babble his thanks, Quatre's voice said, :Oh! I almost forgot! We need someone to stay up! The mages from Sank will be arriving all of tonight and most of tomorrow!:  
  
Heero glanced at Duo, who had paused. :Don't worry, I'll take care of it,: Duo quickly said, and then continued his babbling.   
  
:They're going to be confused,: Quatre continued. :Because they don't really know why they're coming here...: he suddenly broke off with a startled cry.  
  
:They can handle it,: Trowa said firmly, as Heero wondered what Trowa had done to make Quatre react like that. :Go to sleep.:  
  
Whatever protests Quatre might have made went unsaid as they felt him suddenly fall asleep, thanks to Trowa.   
  
:Aren't they cute?: Duo remarked cheerfully as he continued to talk at Sally, whose eyes were beginning to look a little glazed despite her best efforts to pay attention to the rambling speech patterns that Duo fell into when he was relaxed.  
  
:Baka.:  
  
----------------------------------------  
  
The first normal mage arrived a few hours later - it was a young woman mage with her normal husband, both of them completely confused, the man upset and more than a little angry. Duo, who was not the most polite of people under the best of circumstances, made a few rude remarks in response to something that the man said to him, and the pair were on the verge of leaving when Sally intervened, drawing them aside and offering them both some food and clothing, since the woman had apparently dragged her husband out of bed in the middle of the night to come here. After he found that out, Duo calmed down pretty quickly and explained the entire situation to them. They were considerably less happy after that, but the woman firmly declared that she had to stay, and surprisingly enough, the man listened to her and agreed to stay.   
  
Wufei watched the woman firmly tell her lawful husband that they were staying, saw him capitulate to the demand, and decided to leave.   
  
He walked out into the main room, where there were a bunch of quiet travelers finishing up their dinners. Sally was standing behind the bar, cleaning some glasses. She glanced up as he entered the room, and he deliberately avoided her gaze. This was one of the things he really didn't want to deal with right now. He headed outside.  
  
It was dark, and it took his eyes several seconds to adjust. There was only a sliver of the moon showing, and even the magic he could see in the air all around him seemed muted, quieter for once. The only illumination came from the lone torch outside the door to greet travelers. Wufei looked around, then called his wings. It suddenly became a lot brighter as the fiery appendages sprung from his back. A few sweeps of his wings, and he was up on the roof of the two-story building. Since he'd gotten wings, he'd discovered that he enjoyed sitting on the roofs of buildings, staring at the stars. There was a better view from rooftops, and you were less likely to be disturbed there.  
  
As soon as he'd settled himself, he made his wings disappear. He discovered, through experimentation, that they didn't just look like fire, they actually were fire, and he didn't want to set fire to the roof. Sally didn't deserve that.  
  
He frowned as he realized that his thoughts had returned to *that* woman again. He wished he'd never met her.  
  
His clan was one that prided itself as scholars first, warriors second. By the time he'd been instructed to get married, he'd had a very firm conception of how women were supposed to act, both in general and in respect to their husbands. Subservient, somewhat docile, always obedient... he'd been taught that all of these things were proper and to be expected in a wife.  
  
Meiran had been none of those things. She was from a clan that was warriors first, and prided themselves on that above all else. Meiran had been their pride and joy - and a nightmare as far as Wufei was concerned. She was loud, outspoken, a warrior herself... she cooked less than he did, complained loudly in public about being saddled with a bookworm for a husband... the list went on and on. One week before their wedding, she'd challenged him to a fight. He'd refused, on the grounds that she was a woman and only weaklings fought women... well, she'd... pressed him into it.  
  
He'd beaten her, but only just barely. It was the first time he'd actually taken the time to see her fight, and he'd been surprised. She actually was quite good. Not better than him, but still very skilled, and strong for her age.  
  
She'd been angry, of course. Very angry. But she'd still picked herself up out of the mud and bowed carefully to him, as any honorable warrior would. He bowed back to her, and saw the surprise in her eyes, and only then realized that he was treating her like another warrior, not a woman. He'd stammered something awkwardly, cursing himself as he did so, and quickly walked away, leaving his soon-to-be-wife staring after him.  
  
Things had changed after that. Things were still very awkward between them, although not as strained. He'd suddenly decided that if she couldn't cook, then he wasn't going to insist that she make their meals, especially since her sullen efforts had nearly poisoned both of them before. And she surprised him more than once by coming up to him while he was studying and quietly (for once) asking him what he was doing. He'd discovered that while she was no scholar, she was not stupid, either. Her questions had led to several rather violent arguments about the nature of virtue and whether or not a person had to be contemplative in order to live well.(1) They still fought, but it was a distinct improvement over infantile name-calling.   
  
He'd had only one short week to try to adjust to the changes between them, and by the time their wedding arrived... well, they weren't in love, not even friends, but there was a grudging respect that hadn't been there before. Then came the disastrous wedding. He'd been married to her for less than fifteen minutes when the demons came, and started slaughtering the guests. At first they'd both fought alongside their families, but it soon became clear that nothing they were doing was hurting the demons, and the priest (who he now knew must have been some sort of minor mage) told them to run. He could still feel her hand in his as they fled. Then there was a snap in the back of his head as the man's shields shattered, and he stumbled. Meiran turned to look back, and suddenly jerked her hand out of his and turned to fight the demon that had just killed her uncle. He was still trying to recover his equilibrium from the strange snap in his head, and by the time he turned to pursue her, it was already too late, and she was lying on the ground at the feet of the demon in a puddle of blood. Her sword was still in her hand.   
  
He'd frozen. In that instant, he wasn't sure if he really wanted to be the only surviving member of two Clans. He'd almost been relieved when the demons came after him. Then he started sprouting flames, and the decision was taken away from him.   
  
When he'd finally arrived in this land, it had been easiest to fall back into his old habits and perceptions of women. It was easier, really, and most women here did fall well within his perceptions. Weak, foolish... just look at Relena's ladies-in-waiting. Even the Queen herself tended to become quite foolish when she was around Heero, although she was not that way when ruling her country. But it was easy to ignore that part of her, and it didn't bother him.  
  
Sally... he could not ignore, couldn't dismiss, like the others. She reminded him, strongly, painfully, of Meiran, and that made him think of the future that they should have had together, the one that was now denied him. He didn't know if he ever would have been happy with her as his wife, but it would have been... interesting.  
  
Sally was everything that a woman wasn't supposed to be, strong, independent, a fighter (if the weapons she stored in her office were any indication, which Wufei did not trust until he actually saw her fight)... everything that Meiran had been. Which was wrong, right?  
  
Wufei clenched a fist, trying not to remember. He couldn't wait to leave.  
  
  
  
  
  
1. This is what happens when I write a story right after studying for a test on Aristotle and the best possible life.  
  
  
So, how'd I do with Wufei? I have such trouble getting into his head, but I didn't want him turning into a stereotypical two-dimensional character. Any comments (or even flames) on that would be greatly appreciated.  
  
  
Once again with the good news and bad news - we've caught up with as much as I've written, so things are going to slow down now. I have about half of Part 13 written, but after that it's going to be a couple of weeks between sections, because I don't write these things for a living (although I wish I did), so I can't spend as much time on them as I'd like. Hope everyone's enjoying it so far!  
Marika 5/4/01 


	14. 

By midnight the next day, they had over two dozen mages, along with about a dozen non-mages who'd accompanied their loved ones when they'd left their homes and who now refused to return, even after finding out that they'd be in danger. Or maybe it was especially after they'd found out that they (and their loved ones) would be in danger. Quatre worked hard to convince as many as the non-mages as he could to go back to their homes, because he didn't want them getting hurt. Unsaid was the fact that he wanted to do the same for the mages he'd summoned, but he needed them too badly to send them to safety, the way he wanted.   
  
Finally Quatre stood on the road in front of the building, his eyes unfocussed. A few minutes later he came back inside and quietly announced that all the mages in Sank kingdom were there. They all headed outside, and then Trowa carefully cast the spell to bring them all to the desert. He tried not to think about the last time he'd cast this spell, when Quatre had lost control of himself, but he couldn't stop an almost invisible shiver from running down his spine.   
  
The time he'd spent without his memories was somewhat blurry and vague within his own memories, as if it had happened to someone else and he was just an observer, and in a way, it had. He hadn't been the same person without his memories. He'd been helpless. He hadn't been so helpless in a long time, and the memory of the experience was not pleasant. He hadn't liked it any more the second time around, now that he could remember both instances.   
  
The thing that he remembered most clearly was a seemingly endless darkness, from the time when he still drifted in unconsciousness, before Treize had *permitted* him to wake up, before he was allowed to start making memories, any kind of memories to fill the empty void that existed in his mind without his memories. That void had given him nightmares even after he started making new memories, and the previous night he'd put himself in a deep trance so that he wouldn't have any nightmares. Not so much for himself - he had nightmares all the time, he was used to them - but for Quatre, now that they were linked again.   
  
Even now, the thought of how close he'd come to losing Quatre was enough to make his heartbeat speed up and his throat to tighten. First Quatre losing control of himself to the power, then him attacking Trowa... He'd been ready to do anything, including dying, in order to bring Quatre out of it, but he'd never really thought about how much Quatre would suffer if Trowa died. He knew how he'd feel if Quatre died, but somehow, he'd just never pictured Quatre being the same... he was a loner, he knew that, partially because of his powers and partly because of who he was. He had trouble getting to know people at all, and the four friends he had now were more than he'd ever had before. Even at the circus, he'd had only a casual relationship with most of the other performers - the only person he'd gotten remotely close to was Catherine, and that was more because of her than because of any effort on his part. Quatre made friends with everyone he met, and did so as easily as he breathed. He would have thought that Quatre would turn to one of them if he lost Trowa, but obviously that was not the case.  
  
And that terrified him. They were about to enter a war where neither of them had much of a chance of survival. He wasn't sure what he'd do if Quatre died and he didn't. He wasn't the type to consider suicide an option, or he would have died long ago, when he was still a slave of the mercenaries, but if Quatre didn't survive, it might become an option. But what about Quatre? He didn't know what would happen if he died and left Quatre behind, and he didn't really want to think about it, since if it happened he wouldn't be able to do anything about it. He promised himself he'd do his best to survive, if only for Quatre's sake.  
  
:Trowa?: Quatre asked, and then he realized that he'd been so caught up in his thoughts that he'd never completed the spell. :If... doing this with me bothers you too much, one of the others can go with you,: he said quietly, doing his best not to sound hurt.   
  
:It doesn't bother me,: he told Quatre while mentally scolding himself for his carelessness. :I just wasn't paying attention.:  
  
:You're sure...:  
  
:Certain,: he said firmly, giving Quatre a brief squeeze. He quickly completed the spell, and suddenly they (along with all of the mages and their relatives) were standing in the middle of the desert, the wind whipping around them, the sun beating down on them overhead.   
  
Trowa felt the shock and surprise of the mages around him, and quietly reinforced his shields.   
  
"Come on," Quatre said encouragingly to the others. "It's only a few hours from here, and they'll be out to meet us, I'm sure!" he said cheerfully.   
  
Sure enough, less than an hour later, a man on horseback approached them.   
  
"Abdul!" Quatre shouted as he was suddenly embraced by a man who probably weighed twice as much as he did. At least twice as much.   
  
"Master Quatre!" Abdul shouted in return, sounding just as pleased. "What are you doing here? And who are these people?"  
  
"The war's almost here," Quatre said seriously. "And I'm going to base it out of your fortress. These are some mages, and they need to be there. The supply train arrived on time, didn't it?"  
  
"It left just a few days ago, Master," Abdul replied, his eyes traveling over the group. "Will you be staying as well?"  
  
Trowa marveled at their loyalty, that Quatre had just appeared (literally), announced that he was about to make their home the center of the greatest war the world had seen in a thousand years and that he was bringing along a bunch of defenseless mages, and their only question was whether or not Quatre was staying.   
  
"I can't, not yet," Quatre said apologetically. "We have to collect the rest of the mages. We should be back within the week, though, and we'll be dropping off more mages between now and then. I'd appreciate it very much if you'd have someone posted to watch in this direction - we'll always approach this way." He smiled hopefully at Abdul, who grinned at him.  
  
"No problem, Master Quatre! I'll make sure we do that as soon as I finish escorting these people back to the fort!"  
  
"Thank you very much," Quatre told him with another brilliant smile. "I'm very sorry, but we have to get back as quickly as possible... time is of the essence."   
  
"I understand," Abdul replied. "And I will escort them back to the fort."  
  
"Thank you! We really need to go, now, though." :Do you want to do this or should I?: he asked Trowa.  
  
:There isn't a power center near Sally's place - the closest I can get us is a couple of hours.:  
  
:Then I'll do it, I can take us directly to the others.: "See you soon, Abdul!" he said out loud, then Trowa felt him reach for his power. There was a flash of light, a moment of disorientation, and then they were standing in the middle of the main room of Sally's place.   
  
Heero, Duo, and Wufei were sitting at a table directly in front of them, and all three started as they suddenly appeared, but that was nothing compared to the reactions of the rest of the people in the room. Half of them turned very white and just stared, the other half jumped to their feet, upsetting the tables and reaching for their weapons. One of the serving women let out a little shriek and fainted dead away.  
  
"Oh dear," Quatre murmured, and a hint of power drifted out from him. Suddenly everyone in the room collapsed, unconscious before they hit the ground.  
  
"Oh dear?" Duo asked, then snickered. "Come on, Quatre, you can say a curse, I'm sure of it!"  
  
Quatre shot Duo an irritated look. "We really have to get going," he replied.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Duo said, getting up out of his seat. "Was everything OK?"  
  
"We saw Abdul, and I told him what was happening," Quatre replied. "He took them back to the fortress."  
  
"Oh, that's good," Duo remarked with a yawn and a slow stretch, reaching his arms towards the ceiling. "So we're just going to start flying, and they're going to find us?" he asked dubiously.  
  
"On the main north-south road," Quatre replied. "They should be in groups, by now, so that will be easier. We'll stop in... we'll stop at my old home and pick up some supplies from Iria, and then head for the desert. I don't want to ... let anyone else get involved." He swallowed, and Trowa felt Quatre raising his mental shields, although whether it was to shield himself or the others was questionable. Either way, Trowa decided that it was unacceptable.  
  
He pushed gently against the shields and said, :It wasn't you.:  
  
Quatre winced. "It was me," he said out loud. "The worst part of me." He swallowed. "It is my fault, but we have other things to deal with now. I just want to do my best to make sure that I don't hurt any more innocents."  
  
Trowa wasn't sure that that adjective applied to any of the people he'd killed - they were all Oz soldiers - but he didn't think Quatre was ready to listen to an argument about that now. :Everyone has a darker side, a part of them that they do not like,: he said quietly. He should know. He was intimately familiar with his own. :Having one does not make you an evil person.:  
  
:But letting it out to kill hundreds of people?: Quatre asked in response, then shook his head. :It doesn't matter right now. We have to go.:  
  
Trowa frowned, not wanting to leave it like this, but he could tell that Quatre wasn't ready to forgive himself yet, and no argument was going to change his mind. He nodded slightly and followed Quatre outside.  
  
---------------------------------  
  
They'd barely flown for two hours when they came across the first group of mages, just like Quatre had said there'd be. There were seven mages and three normal humans who refused to leave the side of their loved ones. This time Quatre didn't bother to try to convince them otherwise, he and Trowa just took them straight to the Manguanac's base down in the desert, while Duo, Heero, and Wufei continued along the road, keeping an eye out for other groups of mages.   
  
And they found them - two of them, actually - while they were waiting for Quatre and Trowa to return. Between the two groups there were over a dozen mages and four more normal humans. That group had two children in it, who'd been prisoners along with the other mages, but neither of whom had even reached ten years. We can't take children with us to war! he thought, horrified. But when Quatre and Trowa returned, after a shorter period of time than for the last trip, they took those mages to the desert, as well. Including the two children.   
  
When Duo realized that Quatre was going to bring them along, he'd shot the smaller boy a horrified look. Children! Quatre's back had been turned, but when he turned to look at Duo, Duo thought that he'd overheard the thought. But when he didn't say anything, just stared at Duo for a moment before turning his head away, Duo decided that he must be mistaken.   
  
The moment that the second group disappeared, Heero turned to frown at Duo. Duo was somewhat amazed to find that he could actually tell the difference between a thoughtful frown and a glare. It was tough, sometimes, probably because Heero's eyes were always so intense... Now he wasn't angry, just thoughtful, and it was something having to do with him.   
  
"What is it, Hee-chan?" he asked without thinking, then winced. Heero was becoming more tolerant of the pet names Duo made up for him when he said them silently, but he still tended to get irritated when he said them out loud.  
  
Heero blinked, but didn't say anything. Finally he said, "Trowa asks that you shield more firmly, or stop thinking so strongly when Quatre is around, because you're upsetting him."  
  
"But they're just children!" Duo protested, ignoring for the moment that by the laws of both Oz and Sank, they were all supposed to be children. You weren't supposed to drag children into wars. The five of them didn't count as children, for obvious reasons. "They shouldn't be here!"  
  
Heero stared at him, then said, "We need them. Our enemies will possess as many of Treize's troops as possible, and all of his mages. We'll need as much magical energy on our side as we can muster."  
  
"Not children!" Duo insisted.  
  
"Duo..." Heero actually hesitated for a second, then closed his eyes for a long moment. "You're the only one of us who doesn't have any tactical training. Trowa had it from the mercenaries, I learned it from the few times that Odin worked with an actual army, and both Wufei and Quatre learned it as heirs to their families."  
  
"So?" Duo frowned. It wasn't like Heero to hold his lack of an education against him - it wasn't like it was his fault that he'd grown up on the streets! In fact, this was the first time he could ever remember Heero bringing it up.  
  
"This is a tactical decision. If we bring them along, we not only gain their power to aid us, we also deny their power to the enemy. If they are not under our protection, they would be possessed to use against us."  
  
Duo was horrified, and angry with himself for not seeing it soon. Thanatos' memories of the depths to which their enemies were quite clear, he should have seen what would have happened if they left the children behind - there was no way they could shield them while they were spread across Oz and Sank while they fought. And now that he thought about it, it was simple logic to bring them along to help fight. (Which was probably why Heero had no problems with it.) His clan had sacrificed themselves to protect him, so he could protect the world, and as much as he didn't like to admit it, in the grand scheme of things, these children's lives weren't as important as his own. He swallowed when he realized that it might become necessary to sacrifice those lives to save the lives of countless people who hadn't been born yet.  
  
By this time, Duo was well aware of the fact that all five of them were well above normal in terms of intelligence and quickness of wit, enough so that they would all be fairly dangerous on their own even without their powers. He'd taught himself to read, and relied on his wits to make up for the lack of any formal education, and was also aware that his time with the faeries had shaped the way he thought into patterns that were distinctly non-human at times. The faeries always took the long view of everything - whether it was protecting him as a child for something that wouldn't happen for years, or planting a sapling in a particular spot, so that it wouldn't crowd another in a few hundred years, or even analyzing the movement of the stars for hundreds or even thousands of years. It was a by-product of being almost immortal, and was completely different from the lessons that Duo had learned on the streets.  
  
Right now the way of thinking he'd learned from the faeries was clashing very violently with the things that he'd learned from Solo, about protecting people smaller than him, who couldn't protect themselves. There hadn't been lessons, of course, he'd learned from watching what Solo did, and then doing it himself. It just seemed like the obvious thing to do. Learning two such different viewpoints had given him his own... unique... perspective, but right now it left him with a very difficult question... which was more important? He valued both parts of his education.   
  
Then he realized it didn't really matter. They couldn't protect the kids unless they took them right into the center of the danger, and those kids would definitely be possessed if they didn't protect them. They would just have to be extra careful to keep the kids out of danger. Duo promised himself that as long as he was alive, he wasn't going to let them get hurt, and he knew the others felt the same way. The only way someone would get to the kids was if they were all dead, and if that was the case then the entire world was screwed, anyway.  
  
All of this flickered through his head in a matter of seconds, and he found himself nodding. "OK, I get it. I don't like it much, but I get it," he replied. Now Quatre... Oh, shit! he swore to himself. He *knew* how sensitive Quatre was to stray thoughts, and then he practically had to go shouting his thoughts from the rooftop, accusing him? I am such an idiot! he scolded himself. "I'll be careful with Quat from now on. Who told him?"  
  
"Told him what?" Heero asked. He had waited patiently for Duo to come to his own conclusions. If there was one thing about Heero, it was that he was an amazing listener. Once Duo realized that Heero wasn't ignoring his talking, on the contrary, he listened to everything his lover said with his usual intensity, it had gotten a lot easier to talk to him about all sorts of things that he'd never discussed with anyone, and a lot harder to just babble away. Not that it slowed him down much, it just made him think a little more before he started.   
  
"Who told Quatre that we had to do this? How'd he take it?" Duo couldn't believe he'd missed this conversation, but maybe it had been when he and Trowa were alone.   
  
Heero shot him a strange look. "No one told him. He told us. Quatre has the most tactical training of all of us, he recognized the necessity immediately. Trowa thinks that's why it's bothering him so much, because he was the one who came up with the idea."  
  
"Oh. Damn it." Duo was feeling worse by the second, although he was surprised that Quatre would come up with something like that. It seemed more like the sort of reasoning that Trowa or Heero would use. "I'll apologize to him when he gets back, OK?"  
  
Heero nodded slightly, a smug look on his face, and Duo realized something. "Hey, how did you know that I was hurting Quatre?" Then he remembered something else. "You said that Trowa *said* that I was upsetting Quatre! You two didn't talk like this, did you?" he asked, pointing to his own head. That was all they needed, to have Quatre know that they were tiptoeing around him like this...  
  
"Baka. Of course not," Heero said. "We didn't want him hearing."  
  
"Then how did you..." Duo trailed off, trying to remember if Heero and Trowa had had any time alone before he and Quatre headed off again. He didn't think so... Trowa hadn't left Quatre's side for more than three seconds since they rescued both of them.  
  
"There are ways to communicate without speaking," Heero said with a faint smile, then raised an eyebrow.  
  
Duo's jaw dropped. I don't believe it. I don't believe it. The two of them finally came up with a language that consists entirely of monosyllabic grunts, lip-twitching and eyebrow raising! Unbelievable! "You two... talk to each other?" he asked. "Like a code?"  
  
Heero nodded, looking entirely too pleased with himself. "And occasionally to Wufei," he said, giving the other boy a nod. Wufei smiled at Duo, and it was full of malice. Friendly malice, to be sure, but malice just the same. Duo imagined it was what his face looked like when he was playing practical jokes.   
  
"Him too?" Duo cried.  
  
"You talk enough out loud," Heero replied with a tug on his braid. "And Quatre hears too much as it is. You miss out on a lot when you talk too much, Duo," he added with another tug before wrapping his arms around him, still clutching firmly onto the end of his braid. Since both their wings were still out, Heero completed the gesture by folding his wings around Duo.  
  
"You... I... all this time..." For the first time in his memory, Duo was absolutely speechless. "This is to get me back for singing on the road, isn't it?" he asked, turning his head slightly towards Heero.  
  
"Hn."  
  
------------------------------  
  
Four days later, when they reached the castle that Quatre once called home, there was a surprise waiting for them. By then they'd collected well over a hundred mages (close to one hundred fifty when you included the ones from Sank). Quatre knew all of the ones who'd been prisoners with them by name, and somehow also knew the names of the dozen or so others who showed up, mages who'd managed to hide from the Hunters. They were all safely at the Manguanac's base now, and soon their group would be there was well - they were only stopping long enough to get some extra supplies from Quatre's sister to help them through what was coming.   
  
They'd barely flown over the wall when they realized something was going on. Already there was a large stack of boxes, and as they landed, servents were still adding to the pile.   
  
:Quatre, did you send word that we were coming?: Duo asked. He'd been unusually quiet for the last few days - not silent, of course, but there'd been slightly less babbling, and Quatre wondered if it was because of what was coming or something else.  
  
:No, but they did know that we were coming,: Quatre replied, having already picked up that much information from the minds of those around him. All activity had practically ceased as the people in the courtyard tried - and failed miserably - not to stare at them.   
  
:How?:  
  
Quatre did a quick scan of the minds of the people around them. The only thing they knew was that they had to get these supplies ready, and that they were supposed to keep an eye on the skies, for some reason. Well, that reason was obvious now.   
  
:I don't know. Let's go talk to Iria.:  
  
They were still in the halls when Iria suddenly turned the corner. "Quatre!" she cried, joy apparent in her voice. She ran the few steps that separated them and then embraced him warmly. Quatre hesitated... how could she forgive him, after what he did?   
"Iria... I'm sorry," he said softly.   
  
"Sorry?" she stopped hugging him and held him at arm's length. "What for?" Her eyes widened. "You can't possibly blame yourself for..." her eyes narrowed. "You do! Now I know that you can read my mind, Quatre. Read it now. It was not your fault, what happened here. The only people at fault were the soldiers and Treize. You just executed a bunch of murderers."  
  
I'm a murderer, he thought, but he could tell from the look on her face that he'd better not argue with her. He might have enough power to flatten the castle, and enough guts to tell off Treize Khushrenada, King of Oz, but he wasn't about to make his sister (any of his sisters) angry.  
  
"Are you all right?" he asked instead.  
  
"I'm fine. We're secure, now. I managed to call in enough of our reserve troops to cover the difference until we can recruit more people," Iria told him. "You know that I..."  
  
"I'm sure that you will do a very good job," he told her. "Our homeland will prosper, Lady Iria," he said with a warm smile and a slight bow.   
  
"Thank you," she told him, eyes sad. He wasn't that disappointed, actually, he'd never really wanted to be heir, it was just the way things were. Iria would do a good job, and he had a different destiny.  
  
"Iria, how did you know that we would be coming?" Quatre asked, nodding his head towards the courtyard.  
  
"I told her," said a familiar voice, and Quatre's eyes widened as he saw one of the people who'd followed Iria.   
  
"Miss Po!" he exclaimed as she stepped forward. "Did you reach all of your people?"  
  
"I did, and then I hurried here so I could catch you."  
  
:Hurried?: Duo remarked sarcastically. :She must have been riding all night every night since we left in order to get here before us.:   
  
Quatre quickly realized that Duo was right - they hadn't been flying very quickly, but even slow flying was faster than most horses. And they'd gone straight down the road. Given, she'd gotten a day-and-a-half head start, but if she had to go anywhere off the road... Quatre reached out with his mind and discovered that she was, understandably, exhausted, and only barely managing to stay on her feet. He quietly healed the soreness that so many days in the saddle will always cause, and gave her a bit of his energy. Her eyes widened, then fixed on him, and she bowed slightly. A bow, not a curtsy, that was interesting, he noted.  
  
"Thank you very much," she said formally.  
  
"You're welcome," he said automatically. "Why were you so intent on catching up with us?"  
  
"I want to help you."  
  
"You already have," he responded.   
  
"No, I want to come with you when you go down into the desert."  
  
That caught him by surprise. "Excuse me?" he asked, feeling the sudden tension in the others.  
  
"I want to come with you," she repeated calmly. "I realize that I'm not a mage, and I realize that you have plenty of warriors there, but I believe that I can help."   
  
"How?" his mind was already flying ahead, seeing what contributions she could make.  
  
"I can help organize things. Not on the battlefield, but I can keep track of supplies, wounded... or not," she corrected herself with a slight smile. "Shifts, duty rosters, things like that. I have run an inn for several years, in addition to Sank's spy network."  
  
Quatre hesitated. :What do you think?: he asked the others.  
  
:You can do all of that, right?: Duo asked.   
  
:Not if I'm pouring all of my energy into fighting,: Quatre responded. :And I know nothing about managing like that. She'd probably do a better job, anyway. She does have the experience.:  
  
:What? I thought that you had all sorts of lessons in that stuff.:  
  
:I was taught how to govern a region, not a single fort. There's a difference,: Quatre responded. :I think we should accept her offer.:  
  
Wufei abruptly broke off contact with the others, but he didn't say no. Quatre took that as encouragement. :Well?:  
  
:If she's crazy enough to want to take part in this, that's fine with me,: Duo replied.  
  
:Heero?:  
  
:She seems competent.:  
  
Quatre didn't have to ask to know that he had Trowa's support.   
  
"Then you're welcome to come," Quatre said with a grateful smile.   
  
---------------------------------  
  
They only stayed at Quatre's place long enough for them to finish gathering the supplies that Sally had suggested that they'd need. It seemed as if she already had a good idea of what they needed in order to survive a siege.   
  
Heero hadn't missed the fact that Quatre had asked all of them for their opinions before accepting Sally's offer, although he'd certainly thought it was a good idea from the moment she made it. Quatre's confidence had taken a blow in the last few weeks, and he wondered - and worried - how this would affect Quatre in the upcoming fight. Trowa was worried, too, and was keeping an eye on him.   
  
Heero had exaggerated when he said that he and Trowa could talk without using words at all - they could communicate, but that was mostly because their minds tended to follow the same patterns, and because they'd been together for so long. But it had been worth it to see the look on Duo's face. He smiled slightly.   
  
He wondered when, exactly, enjoying himself (in any manner) had become important to him. He couldn't remember the exact moment (which bothered him slightly), but suspected that the change was because of Duo. In fact, he knew that it was because of Duo. As quietly as he could, he reached out to find his lover. Duo was playing with some of the children they'd brought along, creating illusions to entertain them as he told stories, and then joining him in a rousing game of tag while the Manguanacs watched in amusement.   
  
Up on the roof, where he was certain no one could see him, Heero let his smile broaden slightly. Duo was half-child, most of the time. That was a good thing.   
  
His smile disappeared as he remembered another child, but he pushed the memory away. It was over, in the past, and thinking about it now wouldn't change anything. He could practically hear Odin telling him those very words, and he repeated them to himself until the memory subsided.   
  
Duo, sensing his change in mood, asked, :Are you OK, Hee-chan?:   
  
Heero's lips threatened to curl upwards again after hearing that irritating nickname that Duo had thought up for him. :Hn,: he said affirmatively.   
  
:Are you sure?: Duo asked, but before Heero could answer, an alarmed shout went up from the guard at the front gate.   
  
A sword appeared in Heero's hand as he conjured himself to the top of the outer wall right next to the huge gates. He crouched on one of the huge stones, wings partially unfurled, sword in hand, ready... and stared.   
  
There was... a hole in the air above the sand, that was the only way to describe it. And through the hole, he could see green grass, trees... a forest. There was a line of faeries - real faeries - walking through the hole, each of them carrying a small sapling. As he watched, they started to walk around the fort in a long line.  
  
:Heero, what's going on?: Duo asked, crouched protectively over the now-silent children.  
  
:Duo, get up here, it's faeries.:  
  
A second later Duo appeared right next to him, also crouching, his wings already out and ready. Heero heard Duo muttering to himself and felt a slight ripple of energy. He made a mental note to ask Duo about the magic he'd learned from the faeries - it didn't feel like anything he'd ever felt before, and it might provide them all with an advantage later on, if they could learn it fast enough.  
  
"It *is* them," Duo muttered, and then jumped off the wall, his wings snapping out to catch him before he fell too far. He easily swooped down to land beside the hole, where one faery was standing, watching the line. Duo obviously knew something that they didn't, because he bowed respectfully to the faery, then started talking.  
  
After a few seconds, he stopped, listening to the faery's response. He tilted his head to the side and asked another question. He listened to the answer, then smiled broadly and bowed again. :Hey, guys! Come here!:  
  
Heero spread his wings and glided down to land beside Duo. A few seconds later Trowa, Quatre, and Wufei appeared behind him. :What's going on?: Quatre asked.   
  
:They're here to help us,: Duo replied, his eyes on the line of faeries. :They're going to make sure that this place is secure.:  
  
:How?:  
  
:They're going to build shields like the ones they use to protect their forests. Nothing gets through those, not even demons, remember? Trowa, they're going to need your help making those trees grow. After that they'll sustain themselves, even in the desert.:  
  
:Why?: Wufei asked.  
  
:It's their contribution to the war,: Duo explained. :They can't fight - they always rely on their shields and magic to either keep danger away or to hide from it, but they know how much depends on us. All of the faeries all over the world will be adding parts of their power to the shield - nothing's getting through it.: Duo turned his head to the other side, and Heero saw that the line of faeries now stretched all the way around the fort. As soon as the circle was completed, the faeries set down their burdens and started digging holes in the sand.  
  
:Quat, are all of your people inside the fort? I mean, are there any out on patrol?:  
  
:There are five out there,: Quatre replied immediately. :Why?:  
  
:You've got to call them back. When the elders set the spell, they're going to make it so anyone who's in the fort can pass in and out of the shields. If they're not inside with us when it's cast, they won't be able to come in at all.:  
  
:I'll bring them in now,: Quatre replied, closing his eyes. Heero felt a ripple of power and then a sudden surge. There were some startled shouts from inside the fort. :I have to go explain things to them now,: Quatre said, then vanished.   
  
By then the faeries had pretty much finished with their holes and were now carefully placing the saplings in the holes, then scraping sand carefully in place around the roots. Suddenly the seven faeries next to the hole all turned and stared at Trowa.  
  
:Go for it. Just make them grow,: Duo instructed him. Trowa raised an eyebrow at Duo's unusually sober tone, then dropped to one knee, closing his eyes. He plunged both of his hands into the sand up to the wrists, and the sand parted like water to let him. Heero felt power welling up all around him as the earth responded to Trowa's call, and suddenly the saplings shot upwards, maturing to huge full-grown trees in mere seconds. Trowa stopped when the top branches of the trees were just below the level of the walls, so that they wouldn't interfere with the view from the walls.   
  
:Is that enough?: he asked.  
  
Duo turned and let out some more of that bird-like language. The faeries spoke back to him, and he nodded. :They say that's fine. We have to get inside now. Are we sure that everyone's inside?:  
  
:Everyone's here,: Quatre told them from somewhere inside the fort.  
  
Heero conjured himself inside the gates, and appeared at the same time as the other three. As soon as they appeared, he felt a tremor in his bones as the faeries started casting their spell. Faery magic felt different than human magic. It flowed along more natural lines, and was less noticeable because of that.   
  
The faeries continued their work for several minutes, then there was a small surge of energy and the tremor disappeared completely.   
  
:They're done,: Duo said, and conjured himself back out to the faeries. Heero followed. Now they were marching back through the portal, although not as sedately as they'd come. Now most of them were dancing around, hugging each other, even jumping into the air and fluttering their wings to hover for several seconds before landing and continuing through the hole in reality. In just a few minutes only the elders remained.  
  
Duo started talking in that bird-language again, then bowed to the faeries again. They all raised their hands to touch their foreheads, and Duo looked very surprised. Then they turned and walked through the hole, before it disappeared and Duo was left staring into space.  
  
:What did they say?:  
  
:Oh, nothing much, they just honored me. It doesn't happen very often,: Duo remarked in an off-hand manner that told Heero that it was very, very important to him. He made another mental note to get it out of him later. :Anyway, the shield's up!: he said with forced cheerfulness. :And its fixed so only we will be able to get through it. We can't change it, but that also means that they won't be able to trick someone into letting them in.:  
  
Duo sighed, then turned to face Heero, putting a big smile on his face. :So what now, Hee-chan?:  
  
Heero shrugged slightly. :We wait.:   
  
--------------------------------  
  
"I'm sorry, sir, but we haven't been able to find out anything yet," the young officer said with a slight bow. "Less than a week ago, every single spy for the Sank kingdom that we'd identified within our own forces disappeared, along with a number of other soldiers who were under suspicion of being spies. We were unable to apprehend any of them before they disappeared or fled back to Sank." The man hesitated, then shrugged slightly.   
  
"Is that all?" Treize asked coldly.   
  
"Yes sir."  
  
"Dismissed," Treize told him. All of the Sank spies had disappeared. The Chosen had vanished. Treize actually had a report that Sank's spymaster had also vanished (not that he knew who he was). They all knew something that he didn't. He could practically feel the energy in the air... something was happening, but he didn't know what, and the frustration was almost enough to drive him mad.  
  
Why hadn't Quatre killed him? The question had been haunting him for over a week now. He had meant it when he said that he would rather die with glory than live in obscurity. And he'd almost had it... Quatre had been poised to strike, he felt the energy rushing around him... and then nothing.   
  
Quatre had looked startled, frightened, almost, and immediately took a step back. Treize continued to turn the meeting over in his mind. Then he boy had said that he was sorry. For what? Not killing him? Treize had been disappointed, but he doubted that Quatre would apologize for not killing him. Then came the most puzzling bit... Quatre had told him to be careful for what he wished for. What did that mean?  
  
He wanted to be a part of the war for this world, not be stuck on the side while the others played out their destinies. What could the problem with that be?   
  
No, the most important part was figuring out why, exactly, he hadn't killed him. Treize replayed the scene in his mind again. He and Quatre had talked briefly, then Quatre raised a glowing hand... he could still feel the power swirling around him, with him waiting for the strike that would end his life...  
  
Wait! Hadn't there been a surge of energy, almost unnoticeable because of how much energy there was to begin with, but now that he thought about it, he was certain it was true. Quatre had attacked him!  
  
That realization brought on another. He did try to kill me, but he couldn't! He could not kill me!   
  
That thought opened a realm of possibilities. If Quatre couldn't kill him, it meant that he was much more powerful then he'd realized. How?   
  
A glimmer of a possibility flickered through his mind, and in that momentary realization came damnation.  
  
I'm the Seeker... he thought with a growing feeling of horror. Then there was a clap of thunder, a flash of light, and everything faded to blackness.  
  
  
  
Well, there went Treize. Now we can finally get on to the actual fighting! I'm not crazy about this part, but I needed some sort of transition into the actual battle. Look for some more action next time!   
Marika 5/6/01  



	15. Part 14

Several days after they moved into the Manguanac's fort, Wufei was watching Sally order a bunch of the Manguanacs around, having them rearrange their stores while Duo and the children ran around underfoot. Apparently the soldiers had been satisfied with the old arrangement, but she wasn't. Something about not being able to find anything with less than a full hour of searching through boxes and barrels, so she'd bothered them until they helped her rearrange everything. No, wait, that wasn't quite fair. They'd been impressed with how organized the supplies she'd brought in were, and had offered to let her look through their stuff sometime. She decided that now was a good time, and wouldn't leave them alone until they helped her.  
  
She was doing a decent job of it, too. Wufei had been watching very closely for any mistakes so that he could point them out, and hadn't been able to find any, even with the chaos that Duo was causing. So far.  
  
Sudden a sharp pain lanced through his head, causing him to grit his teeth to keep from crying out and almost driving him to his knees. That was immediately followed by a rush of energy that did push him up onto his tiptoes as the energy filled him, energizing him beyond anything he'd felt before. In the next instant it was gone.   
  
Wufei opened his eyes and automatically looked up. For the first time that he could remember, there was no solid barrier of light up at the very limits of his sight. The amount of magic in the air seemed to have increased exponentially, though. The barrier's gone.  
  
Below him, all of the kids had stopped playing. Several were rubbing their heads and a few were crying. Duo had both hands pressed against his temples, and there was a maelstrom of energy surging around him. Duo always had a good deal of energy floating around him, as did all of their group, but this was absolutely ridiculous. Then he glanced down at himself and swore. He was glowing just as much as Duo, and Wufei felt the beginnings of a headache stirring. It had taken him a long time to get used to how much energy the others had, now the problem was even worse.   
  
:Hey, Wu, what happened?: Duo asked him.  
  
:The shield collapsed!: Wufei snapped. :And my name is Wufei!:  
  
:I know that,: Duo said sarcastically. :The energy...: he prompted.  
  
:All the energy that was in the shield has reentered the world,: Wufei told him. From his vantage point he could see Sally walking around the suddenly quiet children, comforting them, trying to figure out what had happened. Duo appeared to be completely caught up in what had happened and hadn't even noticed her. :Duo, tell her what happened,: he ordered without thinking.  
  
:Tell who... oh, Sally! Gee, Wufei, I didn't know you cared,: Duo said, then laughed as he turned to talk to Sally. :Sounds like someone's interested in a certain onna!:  
  
:Kisama! I have no interest in weaklings!: Wufei snapped, which was entirely true. He wasn't sure why he had told Duo to explain things to her, but they did know things that she couldn't, and she was doing admirably well keeping up even without that information. The Manguanacs who were moving the boxes hadn't noticed anything was wrong yet.   
  
Wufei suddenly realized where his thoughts were headed and started cursing again. He was *not* going to think about this!  
  
Suddenly something pressed gently against the back of his mind, something that felt entirely different from one of his companions asking permission to talk to him (which they rarely did) or anything else he'd ever felt before. His attention immediately focused on the strange sensation. It was close, perhaps mile or two away from the fort itself. Wufei automatically cast a spell so he could see what was going on. He blinked as an image resolved in the air in front of him - it was the desert, but there was power out there, dancing in strange patterns above the sand. A lot of power, enough so that a non-mage could probably see the lights.   
  
He frowned. There was something vaguely familiar about that particular pattern of lights, the feel of the magic. He'd felt something... not exactly like this, but similar, very recently, if he could only remember where!  
  
Suddenly a line of light appeared over the desert, which quickly became a circle of light, and he started cursing again as he realized why the magic felt so familiar... this magic was similar to the spell the faeries had used to bring themselves here to establish the shield. This was human magic, which was why it felt so different, but the purpose was the same. He frowned and concentrated on the mind who was casting the spell. He wasn't as good at this as Quatre, but it took a fair bit of concentration to cast a spell of this difficulty, so it wouldn't be hard to find them and figure out why they were casting the spell.  
  
He did locate the mind almost immediately by tracing the magic signature back to it's source. Almost immediately he broke the contact, then proceeded to grit his teeth to keep himself from throwing up. What he had just touched was not human. Not in it's mind, anyway, the body was that of one of Treize's Hunters. His touch had been brief, but it had been enough to tell him that Treize... or whatever was currently in charge of Treize's body... was trying to bring through most of his troops. They'd be fresh, and within a few miles of their target.  
  
Wufei interrupted the spell with a spoke word, and the portal disappeared. There was a momentary pause, then someone started to cast the spell again. He interrupted it again, but for some reason it was harder this time. They cast it again. And again. And again. And *again*. By the seventh or eight time, there was less than a second between the castings, and a sweat had begun to bead on his forehead from the effort he was expending to keep his enemy from opening the portal. How had he suddenly become so powerful? Wufei hadn't stayed very long in the other man's mind, but he'd been certain that the Hunter was still much weaker than he was, so what had happened?  
  
He gritted his teeth as the next spell came. They were practically attacks, now, assaults on the spells he'd set up to interrupt their work, each new spell they cast chipping away at his defenses. At this point he couldn't even spare the concentration to call the others for help - if they got even one of their spells established, he'd never be able to break it and Treize would be able to bring every one of his cursed troops through before they could break the spell. He silently cursed himself for not calling the others for help earlier, when he could have.  
  
Yet another wave of power was cast at him, and he groaned and actually dropped to his knees. Suddenly he realized what had happened... many, maybe all of the Hunters had to be combining their energy in order to fight him. How many of them was he facing, anyway?  
  
^Enough of us, human,^ a voice sneered in his mind, and Wufei hurriedly raised his mental shields, remembering that the demons had attacked through the mind in the last war.   
  
^We have no need for that now, you're about to collapse on your own,^ the voice taunted him. It sounded vaguely like Treize, but there was more emotion and rage in this voice then he could ever remember hearing from the king of Oz. ^It's only your stubbornness that's kept us out so far, and you can't last much longer. You'll be the first to fall, and all because of a stupid...^ The voice was suddenly cut off.  
  
:Wufei, here!: Quatre's voice said into his mind, and he felt a mental hand being extended.   
With a gratitude that he could never express to them, Wufei grabbed for the link and felt power pour into him. He got a shock as he realized that the power was far more than Quatre by himself could provide. The other four must have linked to each other before extending their power to him.  
  
:I'm sorry,: Quatre apologized. :I didn't notice you were in trouble until just a minute ago, and then we had to link...:  
  
:It's fine,: Wufei said sharply.   
  
:What's going on?: Duo asked.  
  
:They're attempting to open a portal to bring Treize's troops through,: Wufei replied as he effortlessly deflected another attempt to disrupt his spells. What had been a major effort for him by himself was almost unconscious with the five of them linked.  
  
:Oh, so what do we do now?: Duo asked after a moment's hesitation. :I mean, this isn't too tough, but we can't keep it up forever. They can't, either, but they'll probably come back as soon as our backs are turned, so...:  
  
Wufei thought quickly. :I know a spell that won't allow them to create any portals within a certain radius of this spot. But it will take me several minutes to cast, and I need all of my concentration.:  
  
:No, problem, Wu-man!: Duo declared cheerfully. :Me and Heero'll watch them for now, you just concentrate on that spell!:  
  
Wufei decided to forgo correcting Duo about his name this one time, and carefully started constructing the spell in his mind. While a good deal of the spells did have some words that had to be spoken, or a few gestures that accompanied them, almost all of the actual formation of the spell was done in your mind.   
  
He had barely started when Duo let out a loud curse and started muttering to himself. Linked as they were, Wufei couldn't help but overhear him. :Those sneaky rat-bastards! I swear, when I get my hands on them, they're going to wish their mother's mother's mother's never looked at that mule! Those fucking...:   
  
:Duo! I need to concentrate!:   
  
Miracle of miracles, Duo actually did fall silent, leaving Wufei to wonder exactly what they'd done to provoke that reaction from him.   
  
It did take him several minutes to construct the spell, but the moment it was ready (and he'd finished checking it over), Wufei spoke the words that were the trigger. He felt the momentary drain as the spell pulled power from their link, and then it was gone and the faint stress of holding off their enemy also disappeared. Wufei started to drop out of the link, then remembered what the result to Quatre would be, and restrained himself.   
  
After a few seconds Quatre said, :All right, I'm ready,: and dropped out of the link himself. With Quatre gone, the link itself dissolved, and the others automatically fell out of it.  
  
Wufei became aware of his body again and opened his eyes to see a blond head hovering worriedly over him. "Wufei, are you all right?" Quatre asked, extending a hand to pull him to his feet.   
  
Wufei stood up on his own, brushing off of the knees of his pants, which had gotten dirty when he dropped to the ground. He looked around and saw that they'd all conjured themselves to his position to aid him with the link. Duo was somehow managing to look angry and concerned about him at the same time, and Heero and Trowa had no expression, as usual, although as he watched, Heero placed a hand on Duo's shoulder, and Duo seemed to relax slightly, leaning back against Heero. Quatre suddenly turned very red.   
  
"Can you guys, ah, talk about that in private?" he asked, and Duo's eyes widened.  
  
"Aw shit! I forgot again! Sorry, Quatre, you weren't supposed to hear that."  
  
"I guessed," Quatre said quietly with a slight grimace before he turned to Wufei. "Are you all right?" he asked again.   
  
Wufei gave him a curt nod. "Fine. Thank you for the link."  
  
"I'm sorry," Quatre apologized again. "I should have realized something wasn't right, but I wasn't paying attention..."  
  
"Quatre," Wufei said with a slight edge in his voice, and Quatre stopped talking. "Thank you."  
  
Quatre stared at him for a second, then said, "You're welcome."  
  
There was a short silence, then Duo asked, "Hey Wu, what's the range on that spell you cast?"  
  
"My name is Wufei," Wufei said, then replied, "About twenty-five miles. That's the limit of it's effectiveness. They'll probably cast a spell right outside the barrier."  
  
"And what, exactly, does that spell do? Does it keep them from casting any magic, or just that one particular spell?" Duo asked curiously, keeping himself surprisingly on-topic.   
  
"It keeps them from casting any spells that would allow them to bring their people in, all the transportation spells, but that's it. It would take more power than the five of us combined have to keep them from using any magic over a region that large."  
  
"But can we do it at all?"  
  
"No. It's inefficient. A shield like that would only be effective a few hundred feet around this place, and only stop people within the area from casting spells themselves, not from having people step back from the field and casting spells to affect people within it. Very few of the mages on his side will be exposing themselves, anyway."  
  
Duo nodded, but his face had a distant expression, which told Wufei that he hadn't given up on the idea.   
  
Suddenly they all turned as they felt the ripple of power outside the shields Wufei had just built.  
  
"Well, that's it," Duo commented unnecessarily.  
  
Quatre suddenly gasped, and his face had a pained expression on it.   
  
"What's wrong, Q?" Duo asked worriedly.  
  
"Treize has started bringing his people through," Quatre responded in a strained voice. "They're possessed. I can hear them screaming in their own minds." He closed his eyes and swallowed. His lips moved silently, and Wufei felt him cast a spell. Then he visibly relaxed, the tension draining from his body, although his expression was still pained. He made a visible effort to get control of himself, and smiled weakly at all of them. "I forgot. Gente told me that I'd feel that, and he taught me a spell to block it out, but I forgot to cast it. I'm fine now." His pale face belied the truth of that statement, though.  
  
There was another moment of silence, then Duo asked, "How long until they get here?"  
  
"There will be an attack at noon tomorrow," Quatre replied, his eyes distant.  
  
"That soon?" Duo asked, eyeing the sun which was well past it's high point today. "Doesn't it take time, or something, to move that many people?"  
  
"They'll march all night, and leave as soon as the last troops are through the portal."  
  
Duo blinked. "Even I know that's bad tactics," he commented. "They're going to be exhausted by the time they get here."  
  
"They're possessing the bodies of those men," Quatre replied. "The demons don't care if a couple of men drop dead of exhaustion on the way here, and they'll be supporting their troops through magic during the battles." He swallowed. "I'm going to have to do the same thing to my men, or they won't be able to keep up." For a long moment he didn't speak, then he turned away from the sands, heading for the stairs. "We'd better get some rest, tomorrow's going to be a long day."  
  
"What about the army? What if they try something..." Duo trailed off as Quatre shook his head, looking at Trowa.   
  
"They won't strike before noon," he said with finality.  
  
"But..."  
  
"They won't," Quatre repeated, his eyes still on Trowa. Wufei suddenly noticed that Trowa seemed somewhat pale himself.   
  
"How do you..." Duo asked.  
  
"I have visions," Trowa said quietly. "They won't strike until tomorrow, at noon, but the attack will come." And with that, he turned, put one arm around Quatre's shoulders, and started down the stairs. They'd only walked down a few steps when Quatre put his own arm around Trowa's lower back and murmured something in a comforting tone.   
  
Duo stared after them silently for several seconds, then turned to look at Heero and raised an eyebrow. Something flashed through Heero's eyes before he grunted and they both disappeared.  
  
Swallowing his jealously at what the other two couples had, Wufei conjured himself to his own rooms.  
  
----------------------------------  
  
The next morning was strained, to say the least. Duo and Heero had restrained themselves the night before, only playing for a little while before they went to sleep. Duo couldn't believe that Quatre hadn't told them that Trowa had been having visions - this was obviously something that had been going on for a long time, if they were so confident that his visions could be trusted, but he assumed they had a good reason for not mentioning it until now.   
  
Not too long after breakfast the army arrived. They settled in and started making camp a few miles away from the fort, far enough away so that it would be a pain in the ass to throw anything at them or to attack them, but close enough that they could move in to attack the fort on a regular basis. Great.   
  
Duo entertained himself by spying on the Oz soldiers. Almost immediately he saw what Quatre had meant when he said that they were being controlled like puppets. They didn't move like normal people, they never looked at each other as they went about their appointed tasks, never spoke to each other, never smiled... their movements were somewhat jerky and stilted, and often they appeared to be having difficulty doing tasks that should be second nature to them. He made a mental note to ask Quatre just how much of the person remained in those bodies. If they had as little skill fighting as they did walking, this might be a little easier than they'd thought.  
  
Duo swallowed as he realized that they were probably going to have to kill most of these men. He never had a problem killing people, but it had always been in self-defense or some bastard who deserved it. He didn't like the idea of killing a bunch of puppets who couldn't stop themselves, but there was nothing he could do about it, anyway, so he tried to push the matter out of his mind.   
  
He found Treize's tent, all the way at the back of the camp and surrounded on all sides by a number of well-armed guards. Damn it, they were going to have to fight their way through all of them to get to Treize. Duo carefully reached out towards the tent, maybe...  
  
He pulled back with a curse. Treize hadn't been stupid enough not to shield his quarters. Oh well, it was a little much to hope for.   
  
Suddenly a tall man with long white hair stepped out of the tent and looked around. His eyes glowed a dull yellow, and Duo could feel the power within him. Was he one of Treize's hunters? He felt... familiar, somehow, but Duo couldn't remember why he felt that way. He hadn't been one of the sons-of-bitches who'd captured him a long time ago, and he'd barely seen any of the others. How could he know them?  
  
:Quatre?: he asked, picking the one least likely to snap at him.  
  
:Yes?:  
  
:Can you come up here for a minute? I wanna show you something.:  
  
Quatre appeared beside him. "What is it?" he asked, his eyes automatically traveling to the army in the distance.  
  
"This guy," Duo said, pointing to the circle he was looking through at the white-haired man.   
  
Quatre looked, and his eyes widened. Then sweet, innocent, endlessly polite Quatre began to swear, using words that would make a sailor blanch. Duo stared at him in absolute shock as Quatre proved that he could indeed swear, and with quite a bit of creativity, too. After a minute he switched to another language that sounded suspiciously like Wufei's, then switched again. While he was still in the third language, Trowa, Wufei, and Heero arrived. They all stared at Quatre as he continued to curse, waving his hands around wildly and looking at the image every couple of seconds.   
  
Finally he fell silent, and Duo asked, "Ah, Quatre? Are you in there?" He was halfway afraid that... well, whatever else had been in control before was back.  
  
"No, it's me," Quatre said wearily, running a hand through his hair and staring sadly at the image. "I'm so stupid!"  
  
"What happened? Who is this guy?" Duo asked pointing at the image again.  
  
"It's Milliardo," Quatre said with a sigh.  
  
"Milliardo?" Duo asked, trying to remember where he'd heard that name before. He knew he had, but where...  
  
"Zechs," Quatre clarified, creating a small illusion of the masked man standing in his hand. "Milliardo was what he was called when he was ruling Sank. Relena's brother, remember?"  
  
"Shit!" Duo exclaimed, suddenly understanding why Quatre had started cursing before. Zechs was the most powerful mage out there, except for them. The demons could feed enough power into ordinary mages to make them dangerous, but Zechs... "I thought he was on our side!"  
  
"I forgot to warn him," Quatre berated himself. "I knew I forgot something! He wasn't under our protection when the shield came down, they must have grabbed him immediately. He wouldn't have had a chance."  
  
"This is really bad news, isn't it?" Duo asked, already knowing the answer. Quatre just looked at him, and Duo felt the strongest urge to go have a cursing fit of his own, except Quatre had already covered that and Duo didn't want to copy him.  
  
"Can we do anything?" Heero asked with a frown, staring at the image.  
  
Quatre shook his head. "Not that I know of, unless you know some way of getting rid of the possession short of killing him."  
  
"But he didn't want this, doesn't that make a difference?" Duo asked. Zechs/Milliardo wasn't his favorite person in the world, but he didn't deserve to be possessed and killed by them, not after all the crap he'd been through. But since when was the world fair?  
  
"And you think that any of them wanted to be possessed so they could fight for demon invaders?" Quatre asked with only the barest hint of sarcasm in his voice. "It's always against the will of the victim." He stared at the image for a second, then turned his eyes away, a pained expression on his face. "We need to concentrate on killing him, if we can. He's far too powerful to leave in their hands."  
  
Duo averted his eyes from the pained expression on Quatre's face, knowing that this was going to be difficult enough as it was. He didn't want to copy Quatre, but he couldn't resist one comment.  
  
"Shit."  
  
----------------------------------  
  
The attack came exactly when Quatre and Trowa had said it was coming - just as the sun reached it's zenith, the Oz soldiers came across the sands that separated them from the fort. There was no hint of the hesitation that had marked their movements earlier, just deadly determination with an external origin.   
  
Just before the soldiers reached the fort, Quatre gave the order, and the huge doors were opened. The Manguanacs all poured out onto the sand, and the five joined them. Then the two forces clashed.  
  
As it turned out, they were fairly evenly matched. Treize had more soldiers, but they had more power to reinforce their own fighters with, along with the fact that the five of them were willing to fight themselves, instead of hiding in the distance, the way that all of the Hunters were.   
  
Heero swept through the Oz soldiers with the same brutal efficiency he'd once used when he was still serving Odin, killing soldiers on either side of him with one of the knives clenched in each fist. It gave him a slight disadvantage, especially when fighting opponents with swords, since he had to close in order to kill them, but his power allowed him to enhance his strength and speed to a level that the demons couldn't hope to match, so it wasn't much of a disadvantage.  
  
The battle wasn't that long, no more than an hour or so, and they killed quite a few of the enemy. Suddenly the survivors among the Oz soldiers were retreating, and Quatre ordered them all to let them go. Heero had been aware of Quatre giving orders to various people - usually by name - throughout the battle, ordering them to move to help others, or occasionally warning them of a danger they didn't see. He'd even had a comment or two directed at him, which he chose to listen to. They'd been good suggestions, and he meant to discuss this with Quatre later.  
  
After the Oz soldiers ran off, they were left standing on the battlefield, surrounded by the smell of blood and by dead bodies. Heero looked around and saw that the Manguanacs were breathing hard, but that there didn't seem to be any of them lying among the dead, but he wasn't sure. He knew that none of the others had gotten hurt - he would have felt that.  
  
:Casualties?: he asked Quatre.  
  
:No, we all made it through,: Quatre said, his soft voice belying his exhaustion. Of course, he'd been supporting the Manguanacs through the fight, too, in addition to doing his own fighting. Heero hadn't seen much of him, but the few times he had, he'd seemed to be making a decent accounting of himself, and the edge of his curved sword was covered with blood. Heero made a mental note to speak to him about that later, as well. There had to be some way that they could help support the Manguanacs, so that Quatre wasn't exhausting himself as much.  
  
Quatre spoke softly to the huge leader of the Manguanacs, who stood beside him, and the man nodded and then shouted to the others, who turned and walked back into the fort, occasionally pausing by a body to thrust a sword in to make sure the job was done.   
  
Heero felt a slight surge of energy as Trowa passed some of his own energy to Quatre, who immediately straightened slightly as he healed himself with the energy. :We need to burn all of this,: he said quietly, his eyes traveling over the bodies, a pained expression on his face.  
  
:Why?: Heero queried.  
  
:Sometimes the demons put spells on the soldiers they possess, Heero,: Duo told him. His eyes were wide and he was breathing rather deeply, and Heero realized that he was gaining an enormous amount of power from the people who'd died here. :They might rise. I don't think they'll be able to get through the shields, but there's no reason to take the chance. I'll take care of it.:  
  
:Rise?: Wufei asked sharply.  
  
:Zombies,: Duo clarified. :Thanatos told me. They're not much as fighters, but they're tough as hell to kill. Better to burn them all now then have to deal with it later. Just a second.: Duo closed his eyes and raised one hand over the still battlefield. Suddenly the entire area burst into flames, black flames which consumed every body and all their possessions, but which did not touch any of the five mages. After only a few seconds the fires died down and there was nothing left to show that there'd been a battle here, only some scorched spots on the sand and the blood left over indicated that there'd been anything wrong at all.  
  
They all turned and walked back into the fort. There was no celebration there, no sense of victory, for all that they'd killed so many without a single loss on their side. There was only vague relief on that count, along with a tension that that condition couldn't last forever. This was only the first battle, and there could be years more of this ahead of them.  
  
-----------------------------------  
  
After the first battle they healed quickly, and within minutes of stopping the fighting, they were back in top shape, at least physically. They healed the wounds that the Manguanacs had suffered, and then went to the meal that Sally had ordered prepared for them. Trowa assured them that there'd be no attack this afternoon or evening, and they all drifted off to deal with the aftermath first battle in their own way.  
  
Quatre was probably affected the most, both because of the exhaustion from supporting the Manguanacs, and because he was the only one who hadn't killed regularly before he met the others. Duo suspected that there was more to it than that, especially after he woke the rest of them up with screaming nightmares about the voices in his head, but Trowa soothed him through that; and as more battles came and went, the nightmares slowed and then disappeared.  
  
They did managed to figure out a way to avoid draining Quatre every battle while he was supporting his people, by spreading the effort amongst the five of them. They also got more skilled at using the energy that Quatre was draining from the mages they'd brought with them, while those mages learned to conserve their energy by laying quietly and not exerting themselves, so there was that much more available for use.  
  
The attacks came almost randomly, it seemed, sometimes there'd be none for two or three days, sometimes they came once or twice a day, and there was one battle that lasted for nearly twenty-four hours. Luckily it seemed that Treize's mages were as exhausted as they were from the effort of supporting their troops, because no attacks came for almost three days after that. That particular battle had ended when one of the demons had faltered in their spellcasting. Wufei had sensed it when the protection that kept them from being able to use their powers against the soldiers directly failed, and immediately struck. Every single one of the Oz soldiers had immediately dropped dead. Duo burned the bodies and then they retreated to the relative safety of the fort to recover.  
  
The shields had proven themselves, though. Once a group of Oz soldiers had gotten through the fighting and thrown themselves at the gate. There wasn't anything left of them to burn, and after that the defenders didn't have to worry so much about letting people get through, only about defending their own backs.  
  
Duo and Heero had stopped having sex almost totally, although they slept together every night. By mutual agreement they never had sex within twenty four hours of a battle. There was something wrong about spending your day with your hands drenched in blood up to your wrists and then having sex a few hours later. Duo discovered that there was more comfort available for him in just laying in Heero's arms after a particularly brutal fight than he ever would have imagined. He didn't know what Heero thought about that, and didn't ask, but every night he fell asleep with Duo's braid clenched in his fist, and was in that same position when he woke up.  
  
As far as Duo could tell, the attacks were completely random, but Quatre said that there was a pattern, that Treize was testing them, testing his reactions to certain techniques and their skill in deflecting spells hurled at them in the midst of combat. Duo didn't know what he was talking about, but trusted him. Quatre had turned out to be some sort of military genius, at least that was the impression that he got from Heero. At the very least Duo knew that during the battles Quatre always knew the location and condition of every single one of his people, and of the other four, which was no small task in itself.   
  
They killed hundreds upon hundreds of Oz soldiers, sometimes in just one battle, and they kept coming...  
  
---------------------------------  
  
One day Duo sat with the others in a brief meeting with a few of the Manguanacs and Sally, who'd proven to have a solid grasp of combat tactics, even if she rarely fought herself, and who also knew the stores better than anyone. They were discussing the battle from the day before, in which their (relatively) small group had killed over a thousand Oz soldiers. Great, at this rate it will only take us a few hundred years to get all of them. And Treize is probably training more soldiers back in the center of Oz even as we kill them here, Duo thought pessimistically, and felt Quatre's eyes on him.   
  
Before either one of them could say anything though, Sally spoke up. "This is all well and good. We all know how many of us there are, how many of them they've killed, and how many they have left. We've got plenty of supplies left, enough to last for a year or more, and there's no sign that they can stop us from transporting in more supplies if we need them. The real question is how we're doing in the war, the magic war, and we don't have the answers to that," she continued, glancing at the Manguanacs, who regarded her with no little respect and sometimes gentle amusement. "So, how are we doing, in comparison to the last time?" she asked the five of them. "You're the only ones who really remember that time. So?"  
  
Duo wondered how she'd found out that, but shrugged it off. She had a way of turning up with the most random pieces of information, and never told any of them where she got it from. But he was more interested in Quatre's answer, since he'd been bouncing that question around in his head for many nights now, shielding so Quatre wouldn't realize he was worried. Blondie had enough to think about without Duo adding to that mess by thinking indiscriminately.   
  
Quatre closed his eyes for a long moment while he organized his thoughts. "Compared to the last time? There really is no comparison. At this point in the war last time, our predecessors were still trying to figure out what was going on. They had no idea how to use the full extent of their powers, or to link, or..." he shrugged. "Just about anything. On the other hand, the demons in that time didn't have as much experience controlling humans, or in casting magic in our world, so they were more clumsy as well, although they definitely had the upper hand in that conflict. All things considered, I think we are doing better than they did. We haven't lost anyone yet, while they've lost thousands. But..." he trailed off, looking uncomfortable.  
  
"But what?" Sally asked.  
  
"It's not enough," Heero said flatly. Duo's lips curled upwards. Leave it to his Hee-chan to give it to them straight.  
  
"We can't keep this up forever," Quatre clarified. "We can keep going for a good long while," he quickly added to reassure the Manguanacs and Sally, all of whom looked very concerned at his first statement. "But he's right, it isn't enough. Even if we killed every single Oz soldier..." Quatre looked vaguely naueous at the thought, "...they'd just bring in more, from Sank or Romafeller, or they'd start using commoners and just give them weapons. It isn't enough to kill them, we have to actually strike at the mages, they're the ones with the power to control the people, and there are a limited number of those."  
  
"So we've got to kill the mages," Duo said. "How are we going to do that? None of *them* ever come anywhere near the battlefield, and they're nestled in the middle of Treize's damn army!"  
  
"I know," Quatre sighed. "But we've got to figure out some way to do it. This way just won't work."  
  
  
  
  
  
Well, this is a slightly shorter section, but there was a bit more action in it. Yes, I know I suck at writing fighting sequences, but I think I'm happy with the rest of it. Wufei and Heero are beginning to come easier to me. I think there are three or four more sections left, and maybe an epilogue or two. What'd ya think?  



	16. Part 15

Ironically, it was Sally who first noticed when they started losing weight, over three months after they started fighting. It was absolutely beyond Quatre how she'd done it, since he hadn't even noticed it himself, and he saw Trowa with very few clothes on a hell of a lot more often then she did! He thought about what he'd seen the night before, and was disturbed. How could he have not noticed how thin Trowa had gotten! He was practically skin and bones!  
  
Well, skin, muscle, and bones, Quatre amended. Who would have thought that someone as tall and thin as Trowa would have so many muscles? Quatre smiled to himself as he pictured Trowa. He was absolutely delicious... but he was getting off track. The point was that he should have noticed before Sally. When he did ask, she told him it was something having to do with their wrists, and started feeding them more. She also examined the other mages, and found that they were starting to lose weight as well, although not as obviously as the five of them. She started feeding them more, too.  
  
The fighting continued, and sometimes he felt like it was never going to end. That thought was even more depressing, because it was very close to the truth. Quatre worked very hard to keep from revealing his thoughts to those around him. They had enough to worry about without him burdening them. He was only too aware of that fact as despite all their (and his) efforts, their dreams and nightmares continued to intrude upon his. He spent some time searching through the memories Gente had left him, and determined that Gente hadn't had the same problem, at least not to the extent that Quatre did. He thought it was because his group was very close, and he was closer to the other four than Gente had been, but that didn't help him get rid of the problem.  
  
One of the Manguanacs died. Then another.  
  
When the third died, they started having to worry about more than just the emotional trauma involved in losing their own people - there weren't that many of them to begin with, so every person they lost was a hard blow. When that fact was brought up during a meeting, Sally didn't say anything, but at the next attack, she was with the Manguanacs when the gates opened, a sword in hand. She'd timed it so well that there was no time to argue with her and ban her from the fighting.   
  
She proved that the weapons she'd kept in her office weren't just for show, killing her share of the Oz soldiers in that battle. That didn't stop Duo, of all people, from yelling at her about risking herself when the battle was over. Her response was short and to the point and one that couldn't be repeated in polite company. Wufei watched the entire exchange with a fierce glower on his face and then stalked off without saying a word to anyone, although Quatre had caught him watching her when he thought no one was paying attention. Sally had given Wufei a thoughtful look after that exchange, but still didn't approach him.  
  
-------------------------------  
  
:Wow, they really have it in for us, don't they?: Duo commented as they stood on the top of the wall, looking at the horde of Oz soldiers coming at them.   
  
Horde was the proper word, because there didn't seem to be any pattern or organization to their movements, just *a lot* of soldiers running towards the fortress.   
  
No one seemed to have an answer for that, and they remained silent for a minute. Then Duo commented, :Explain to me again why we can't just let them throw themselves against the shield for a while? They're dumb enough to do that.:   
  
:At first, but eventually they'll figure out they can't get in, and they'll bring in more troops to encircle the fortress,: Quatre replied. :Then they'll start bringing in their mages, and once they've got a full Circle around us, they can do some real damage.:  
  
:Yeah, I was kinda guessing it was something like that,: Duo replied. :But it would be fun to watch them throw themselves against the shield for a while, don't ya think?:  
  
:It would help us conserve resources,: Heero commented.  
  
Quatre stared at him for a second, then looked into his mind and saw what he was thinking. :You're right,: he said after a few seconds. :We'll let them kill themselves that way for a while. But we have to attack them as soon as they start to circle around us.:  
  
No one had any arguments with that plan, and Quatre quickly informed their fighters. He looked back down just in time to see the first of the Oz soldiers throw themselves at the walls of the fort. They hit the shield just feet short of the walls themselves, and were instantly vaporized. Despite himself, Quatre winced. He could barely stand to see humans throwing their lives away like that, even if they weren't controlling their own bodies. It was obvious, just looking at them, the way that none of them even hesitated for a second before throwing themselves against the shield in a futile attempt to get through.   
  
His eye caught on a young man with reddish hair who held a sword in his hand, and he had just enough time to get a good look at him before the man also flung himself against the shield. Quatre closed his eyes and turned his head away, although he knew that denying the reality of what was happening wouldn't do him any good.   
  
It was nearly fifteen minutes before the demons figured out that they weren't going to get through the shields by throwing human fighters at it, and started to encircle the fortress. That couldn't be allowed.  
  
:All right, they're moving,: he told the others. He wasn't sure quite how he had ended up in charge of the tactics in the battles, he just kept track of his men and told them where he thought they would do the most good, it didn't seem like anything too special.   
  
He pushed the thought out of his mind as he spread his wings and jumped down from the top of the wall into the main courtyard, where the men (plus Sally) were gathering. They knew better than to try to fly into the battle. Trowa had tried that once, and nearly had his wings shredded by the number of arrows that had been fired at him. Quatre didn't know if the same thing would happen with his wings, since they were more magical in nature (if such a thing could be said about wings that were completely magical anyway) but he didn't want to experiment.   
  
He landed, absorbed his wings, then drew his curved blade out of it's sheath at his waist. He wore it all the time, now, ever since he'd almost been caught off guard by an attack while he was in dinner. No one had ever said anything even mildly accusatory about his carelessness, although Heero had shot him a couple of hard looks before Duo pulled him away, but that just seemed to make it worse, and Quatre had promised himself he'd never disappoint the others like that again.  
  
The gates swung open, just enough to allow them to slip outside into the fray, and then he was in the middle of one of the largest battles they'd seen yet. Literally hundreds of soldiers had died in that first useless attack on the shields, and they had been only a small fraction of the force here.  
  
Quatre drew all of his power inward, directing it into his muscles and senses, allowing him to move faster than any normal human, even the demon-controlled ones, could possibly hope to move. Then he threw himself into the battle with the same desperate determination that had carried him through the others.  
  
Once the battle actually started, he fell into a kind of haze, where most of his attention was directed out of his body, to the other fighters and to the battle as a whole. He generally only paid enough attention to what he was doing to keep himself alive. He knew that he wasn't their best fighter, not by a long shot, he could do them a lot more good by directing the battle then by focusing all of his attention on fighting. Heero, Duo... all of the others were much stronger fighters than he was - he could hold his own in a normal battle, but in these situations, he mostly took care of anything that came near him and let the others plow ahead.  
  
That was probably why he didn't notice the attack until it was too late. There was an especially vicious set of soldiers on the other side of the fort. He started to direct people there, and suddenly felt a flash of danger from somewhere very close to him. He snapped his attention back to his immediate surroundings, and saw a woman working her way through the carnage. She was dressed in armor, which might have explained how she'd managed to make it this far without getting killed. A better explanation might be the aura of magic that hung around her like a cloud.  
  
Quatre was so surprised that the demons would actually send one of their mages into the field that he didn't react to protect himself until it was almost too late. He threw a mage-bolt at her, then ducked under a sword and stabbed someone in the side. By the time he brought his eyes back to where he'd last seen her, she was gone.   
  
Where'd she go?! he thought wildly, slashing at a couple more soldiers to drive them back. She'd looked so familiar...  
  
Suddenly something hit him hard from the right side, but he knew instinctively that the threat was coming from the left, that the blow on the right was just to distract him. He turned his head just in time to see a flash of pale blonde hair and glowing eyes before he heard mocking laugher and felt a stab of pain in his side.  
  
-------------------------------  
  
Trowa suddenly felt a sharp pain in his left side, and an instant later identified the source. :Quatre!: His panic increased when he realized that Quatre hadn't responded.He conjured himself to Quatre's position, and found Rashid desperately trying to fight through the Oz soldiers gathered there. His target immediately became clear - a small, blond-haired figure slumped on the ground near the fort walls. Quatre... Trowa immediately began killing everything between him and his love. Even from here he could see the blood staining Quatre's shirt.  
  
By some unimaginable stroke of luck, Quatre had been right next to the shield when he was struck, and fell within it's boundaries. Otherwise the Oz soldiers would have killed him instantly. As it was, they'd restarted their futile attempts at getting through the shield, throwing themselves at it in droves, and all dying.  
  
Trowa reached Quatre's body at the same time as Rashid. Trowa immediately reached for the wound, pulling his shirt back to reveal the deep stab in his side, just above his left hip. Why hasn't it healed? He was dimly aware of Rashid covering his back in the midst of the battle, but all of his attention was focused on the body in front of him.  
  
:Trowa! What happened to Quatre?!: Duo shouted in his mind, then grunted with some physical effort.   
  
Trowa realized that he had no idea what had actually happened. "Rashid?" he shouted through the chaos.  
  
"A witch! One of their mages got through and stabbed him!" Rashid shouted in response as he continued to methodically kill the Oz soldiers who ran at them.  
  
:He was stabbed by one of their mages,: Trowa told the others. :He won't wake up, and the wound isn't healing.:  
  
:She might have cast some sort of spell on him to keep the wound from healing,: Wufei responded. :It should lose power once you're in the fortress, in an hour or so.:   
  
:I'll take him inside,: Trowa immediately said, reaching to pick up Quatre.  
  
:No,: Heero told him, and Trowa frowned.  
  
:What did you just say?: he asked quietly, slicing off the hand of an Oz soldier who got too close. The man didn't even flinch, just picked up his sword with his other hand and attacked again. Trowa ran him through, then kicked the body off of his sword.   
  
:You're needed here,: Heero said simply, and Trowa's frown deepened.   
  
:I'm not just leaving him there for the rest of the fight,: he responded, raising his left hand to elbow someone who had tried to grab his arm. He got his arm free, turned, pulled a knife from his belt and used it to slit the throat of the guy who'd grabbed him. He got a fierce satisfaction out of seeing the body slump to the ground.   
  
:Trowa, he's right,: Duo said, sounding regretful. :We really need you in the fight right now. With the Q-man out for the rest of the battle, we're in deep shit.:   
  
Trowa growled intelligibly at him and rammed the knife into the gut of another soldier. He immediately scolded himself for his carelessness as he put too much force into it and the hilt became tangled in some entrails. He shoved the dying soldier away from him and grabbed a knife from the body of one of the soldiers he'd killed earlier. A quick glance around the battlefield told him that Heero and Duo were right - the loss of one of their best fighters could be devastating to his side right now. Already he could see some of the Manguanacs faltering, allowing themselves to get isolated now that Quatre wasn't coordinating the battle.  
  
:Get those four to pull back together,: he instructed coolly, always keeping an eye on Quatre. He couldn't just leave him there, but he couldn't leave the battle, either. If he left now, they would lose, and he'd do Quatre no good.  
  
"Rashid," he said out loud. He knew that the big man heard him, although there was no faltering in his fighting and he didn't turn. "I need you to take Quatre inside. Keep him safe, and then watch him until he recovers from the shock and heals himself."  
  
Now Rashid did glance at him, just for a second, before nodding his head sharply. He let out a loud cry in a language that Trowa didn't recognize, then with a flurry of strikes, somehow managed to clear a small area around Quatre's body. In the brief respite he'd gained, he scooped Quatre up in his arms, then threw him over one shoulder.   
  
Trowa grimaced. That probably wasn't the best way to carry a person with a deep wound, but Rashid had to be able to defend himself, and it wasn't worse than leaving him on the ground. Besides, he could heal up any extra damage that was done along with the actual wound.   
  
He watched as Rashid started to move along the wall, keeping his back to the shield and keeping a sword between Quatre and the Oz soldiers who rushed at them. He was far too big to fit between the trees that made up the shield and the wall of the fortress, but he still made good use of the shield, ducking into it whenever the fighting got too bad. In a few minutes he was out of sight.   
  
Then there was nothing left to do but fight.  
  
--------------------------------  
  
The fight lasted several more hours, and Quatre never reappeared. He didn't contact them, either, which meant that he hadn't woken up yet.   
  
They really could have used his help, too.  
  
Duo had long since given up swearing and muttering about the idiot Ozzies - he was still pissed as all hell, but it was too much effort and required too much of his breath to do that, breath that he couldn't spare right now. He continued to mutter curses silently, but saved his breath for the fighting. He hadn't realized how much Quatre was doing when he organized all of them. His fighting skills might have been weaker than the rest of them, but the chaos that the battle quickly disintegrated into was not pretty.   
  
More than once Duo saw a creepy-looking girl, about their age, dressed in black armor, drifting in and out of the carnage, a cloud of magic so thick he could practically smell it hovering around her. A mage, he thought with the part of his mind that wasn't dedicated to slaughtering Oz soldiers. She's got to be the one who got Quatre. He might not be a tactical genius, but he couldn't see Treize endangering more than one of mages on his side at a time. He redoubled his efforts to get at her, but by the time he got near her, she'd already turned and started to flee, the soldiers closing around her to guard her escape.  
  
Duo caught a fleeting glimpse of something in the eddies of power that surrounded her. It took him a second to figure out what he was sensing - damn it, where was Wufei when he needed him! Then it became clear - he didn't know how the hell she was doing it, but the girl with the freaky eyebrows was somehow acting as a sort of power sink, drawing in energy from all around her. It was probably making her a hell of a lot stronger, but it was also drawing energy from the Oz soldiers around her. It could be enough...  
  
He stuffed one of the two knives he used back into his belt and held out his right hand, concentrating on his power. He drew it in, picturing Thanatos in his mind, just the way she'd appeared in the dreamscape, instructing him as to some of the harder disciplines, holding that scythe...  
  
Suddenly he felt cool wood appear out of nowhere in his right hand. Duo blinked as he stared at the scythe in his hand - he hadn't expected an actual physical weapon, he'd expected an image in his mind, but he wasn't about to complain. He stabbed someone - he didn't really care who - with his left hand, then stuck that knife back into his belt and grasped the scythe in both hands.   
  
He spared a quick glance at the large curved blade - a blade that should have been sharpened metal but was not, was something infinitely more dangerous. He didn't know exactly what it was made of, only that is was shiny and obsidian, and that it pulsed with power. His power.  
  
With an almost negligent gesture, he swept the scythe through the air in front of him. Suddenly a wave of blackness shot out in front of him, originating at the line in the air he'd designated with the blade of the scythe. It struck the soldiers around him in an ever-widening arc. Those closest to him barely stumbled, but as the line got close to the power-sink the girl was creating, it started having a real effect. At first the soldiers were only knocked to the ground, then they were knocked unconscious by the force of his spell, and by the time the wave got within fifteen feet of her, every soldier around her dropped dead.   
  
She spun around, and his magic impacted on the shield she hastily threw up. The result of the clashing magic was a massive explosion that killed even more Oz soldiers. Duo did a quick mental check and was relieved that none of their people had been caught up in the fireball. He'd never seen anything like that before.   
  
:What was that?!: Wufei demanded.  
  
:Damned if I know. There was a ripple in the protective shield, and I attacked it. And I hit that damn girl's shields. Then... kablooey!: That probably wasn't the best description he could have come up with, but it was all that he could provide on such short notice.   
  
:It might be the two opposing forces meeting directly...: Wufei mused out loud. Well, not really out loud, but it was the same thing, sorta. Wufei sounded pretty distracted, but Duo knew better. Wufei was still slicing away with the economical strokes he favored (and man, was he good with that weird sword of his), this other thing was just a passing interest. :We should be careful using our power directly against their mages, it could be... destructive.:  
  
:Attack now!: Heero suddenly commanded, and Duo realized that between the number of people he'd killed with his magic and the confusion caused by the explosion, they had a temporary advantage over the Ozzies. He attacked.  
  
Heero's timing had been excellent. When everyone on their side rallied at once, the Ozzies were caught off guard, and fell quickly. Within a half-hour, the battle was over. After Sally and the Manguanacs went inside, Duo quickly performed the by-now habitual burning of the corpses and sent the scythe back to wherever he got it, and Wufei checked to make sure that there was no residual magic left behind.  
  
Trowa was the first of them inside, and once the gates closed behind them, all four of them immediately conjured themselves to the room that Trowa and Quatre shared.   
  
A female mage was sitting in a chair next to Quatre's bed, a damp cloth in her hands. She was wiping Quatre's forehead with it, but when the arrived, she immediately set it aside and walked over. "Oh, thank the gods you're here!" she exclaimed as Trowa hurried to Quatre's side. "I didn't know what to do... he's feverish, he won't wake up, and he's not healing..." she trailed off as Quatre began to toss his head back and forth on the bed as Trowa knelt beside him. Quatre's face was very pale, almost translucent. The last time he looked this bad was when he lost his magic, Duo found himself thinking.  
  
"What's going on, woman?!" Wufei demanded angrily.  
  
"That's the most he's moved in hours," she reported, wringing her hands. "Is that a good sign?"  
  
Duo suddenly realized that she was talking to *them*, that she expected them to know exactly what was going on? What the fuck did she think they were, gods? He opened his mouth to tell her exactly what he thought of the situation and to vent a little when Trowa finally reached out and gently touched Quatre's hand. Quatre suddenly moaned loudly, and Duo felt a stab of alarm from Wufei.  
  
:Get away from him!: Wufei shouted, and used his power to haul Trowa away from the bed, throwing him halfway across the room. :Don't touch him!:  
  
Trowa spun to look at Wufei, and Duo took an involuntary step back. He'd thought that Trowa's expressionless, blank gaze was unnerving at the best of times, frightening at the worst. That was absolutely nothing compared to Trowa, his eyes practically glowing with anger, his power gathered inside of him, ready to be used. He made a sound that was more of an animalistic growl than a sound a human would make. His body was actually trembling, he was so angry, as Wufei stepped between him and the bed where Quatre lay. Duo immediately decided that Wufei was just about the bravest person he'd ever seen.  
  
:Get out of my way,: Trowa ordered.  
  
"If you continue to touch him, you'll kill him," Wufei replied quietly, subtly motioning for Heero and Duo to move behind Trowa, to restrain him if necessary. In his state, Trowa didn't notice.   
  
"What?!"  
  
"It's a spell. It took me a few minutes to recognize it, but she cast a spell on him and the wound. That's why it won't heal, and why our presence is hurting him."  
  
Trowa didn't respond, and he still didn't look happy, but the emotion was fading from his eyes as he regained control, and Duo realized that Trowa had been dangerously near to going the route that Quatre had taken - letting his power take control of him. That would spell the end for them right now.  
  
"Our presence is hurting him," Wufei repeated, more gently than Duo could ever remember him speaking. "We have to get out of here. The longer we stay close to him, the less time he has, the less time I have to figure out how to counteract the spell."  
  
That got Trowa's attention. "You don't know how to counteract it?"  
  
"Outside," Wufei repeated. "And don't use any magic. Tone it down as much as you can." As he said this, he glanced at Heero and Duo, who immediately followed his instructions. After a few seconds, Trowa did the same, and allowed himself to be escorted out.  
  
The woman mage, who'd fled as soon as Wufei shouted, was waiting outside, and stared at them with wide eyes. They ignored her.   
  
"What's wrong with him? And how can we fix it?" Trowa asked immediately.  
  
Wufei frowned, closing his eyes and pressing one hand against his temple. Duo sensed the deep concentration that meant he was digging through his predecessor's memories. "It's an assassin's tool, especially designed to kill mages," he said slowly.   
  
Duo started to sort through his own predecessor's memories, but couldn't think of any assassin spells that he knew of that would make them have to stay away. "What's it doing?"  
  
"It's centered on the crystal," Wufei said, still frowning and rubbing his brow.  
  
"What crystal?" Trowa asked sharply.  
  
"There was... there must have been a fragment... a shard of crystal on the edge of the blade," Wufei said, finally lowering his hand. "It's not trapped in the wound. It's drawing out his power, his magic, and feeding it to the mage who cast the spell. His body, automatically trying to use magic to heal itself, is feeding the crystal. Having magic used nearby accelerates the process," he finished, his eyes gazing into space. "We are magic," he continued. "It's worse with us in the room, and worse than that with us touching him. If you'd carried him in from the battlefield, it probably would have killed him. Trying to heal him at this point would only end in our power being drawn away as well, and speed up his death. As it is, the spell will continue to drain his power until there is nothing left."  
  
"What can we do?" Trowa asked immediately, worry showing plainly in his eyes as he glanced at the closed door.  
  
For a long moment Wufei didn't answer, and Duo was afraid that he didn't have an answer for Trowa, but finally he turned to the woman, who still stood there, staring at him. "Get Sally Poe," he said to her.  
  
Her eyes widened. "You mean... the woman fighter? She's..."  
  
"I am quite aware of that, onna!" he snapped. "Do it!"  
  
The woman paled slightly, then bobbed her head and ran off down the hall.   
  
Duo looked at Wufei. "Sally? Why do you want her?"  
  
Wufei stared into space for several seconds, then sighed softly, and it was like something, some tension, maybe, just drained out of him. "Sally once mentioned that she was something of a healer, one who used herbs."  
  
"Hey, you're right, I forgot that," Duo remarked after a few seconds of thought. "How'd you remember that?"  
  
Wufei shot him a scornful look. "When your mouth is closed, you have a better chance of hearing something," he said with a pointed look, and Duo grimaced. Well, I guess I walked into that one.   
  
"So why do you want her here?"  
  
"The crystal has to be retrieved and destroyed. None of us can safely touch it. Sally has no magic."  
  
"You mean you want her to go and dig that thing out of Quatre?" Duo exclaimed, then immediately regretted his choice in words when all the blood drained out of Trowa's face. Duo took a step back and decided now was a good time to try that quiet thing of Wufei's.   
  
"It has to come out," Wufei said without looking at Trowa. "Once it's out, he can heal himself, and we can help him. And I've heard of such techniques before - some of my Clan studied them, as a matter of fact."  
  
"Your Clan practiced cutting people open?" Duo asked before he could stop himself. Oh well, there went that attempt at quiet.   
  
"They practiced medicine," Wufei said sharply.   
  
"Will Quatre be all right?" Trowa asked suddenly, his tone vaguely pleading.  
  
Wufei still refused to meet his gaze. "If he survives the initial procedure, he will be fine."  
  
Sally came running down the hall. It was obvious she'd just come in from the battle - she was still dressed in her blood-stained pants and had a sword swinging from her left hip, but at least she'd cleaned the blood off her hands and lower arms. "What's the emergency?" she asked, an amount of urgency in her voice.  
  
Without any prodding, Wufei quickly explained the situation to her. When he got to the part about what she had to do, she cut in. "I'm sorry, but I have only minimal training, from a few books, about that sort of thing. I can't in good conscience..."  
  
"Woman, he will die if you don't," Wufei told her. His tone softened slightly, and he actually looked directly at her, for the first time that Duo could remember. "Please. This has to be done."  
  
Sally stared at Wufei, an odd expression on her face, then she nodded slightly. "What do I have to do?"  
  
"There is a sliver of crystal, mage crystal, imbedded in the wound. You need to find it and get it out of him. Once you have it out, crush it and throw what remains into the fire. Do you understand?"  
  
Sally nodded nervously. "Can I have someone to help me? To hold him down?"  
  
Trowa's head snapped up and Duo quickly said, :That's just normal medicine, Tro. I've seen it with broken legs and arms before. You don't want them squirming around too much and upsetting something else.:  
  
Trowa turned his head away, but stifled his objections.  
Wufei nodded in response to Sally's question. "So long as it isn't a mage," he responded.  
  
------------------------------  
  
Ten minutes later, Trowa stared at the closed door. Rashid had arrived a few minutes ago and went into the room with Sally, and after that there had been no word from them. Trowa could still feel Quatre on the other side, but Wufei had cast some sort of ward on the room so no magic seeped into it, and if he opened the door he'd break the ward and possibly hurt Quatre.   
  
Quatre. Just the mention of his name brought forth emotions that Trowa had never even experienced previous to meeting Quatre. He didn't know how to deal with all of this... feeling. He'd been dead inside for so long, for as long as he could remember, and Quatre managed to shatter all of that. It was a good thing... he couldn't remember every feeling this alive, but it also made him feel... vulnerable. He didn't like that, and the thought of losing Quatre was enough to cause almost physical pain.  
  
Physical pain he could deal with - he'd experienced enough of it so that it didn't affect him anymore - but the feelings that one blond mage evoked in him - they were not so easy to deal with.  
  
I can't lose him, he thought, his throat tightening up.  
  
:It's all right, Tro,: Duo told him. :He's going to be fine.:  
  
Trowa stared at him, not having anything to say. There was no way that Duo could know for certain that Quatre would be all right. Instead, he turned to Wufei. "Are you certain that that will help him?"  
  
Wufei nodded his head sharply. "That is the spell she used. The difficulty is in extracting the shard. It will be quite small."  
  
Trowa swallowed. "If he dies..."  
  
Wufei raised his head with a sharp motion. "Then what? What will you do? Will you kill yourself, and doom all of your people, all of Quatre's people, to slavery under the demons?" He took several steps closer until his nose was mere inches from Trowa's. "Well?"  
  
"You can't," Heero said flatly. "You're needed to defeat them. Especially if he doesn't survive."  
  
Trowa turned just in time to see Duo dig his elbow into Heero's side, and to hear him hiss, :Heero!:, but Heero's expression didn't change.   
  
Heero's unsympathetic bluntness managed to reach Trowa, though, and he managed a curt nod to them. "If he..." he couldn't quite bring himself to say the words. :If something goes wrong,: he continued in his mental voice, :I will help you defeat the demons.: He would, for no other reason than Quatre would want him to. Also, he wanted vengeance. Fighting the demons would provide both. And after every single one of the demons was dead...  
  
Quatre had brought him to life, more literally than anyone suspected, including Quatre himself. After the demons were dead, if Quatre wasn't in this world, what remained for Trowa? After he avenged Quatre and protected his love's people, he would kill himself.  
  
:Trowa, that isn't a solution,: Duo said quietly. :Trust me, I know something about this.: But even as he spoke, Duo unconsciously reached out and snaked an arm around Heero's waist, and Heero reciprocated the gesture by grabbing onto Duo's trailing braid and giving it a gentle tug. Even when he was lost in bad memories, as Trowa knew he must be, even at the worst of times, Duo had Heero.   
  
Duo noticed him staring at their loose embrace, and blushed and looked away. :Look, he's going to be OK, and if he was here, you know he'd give you hell for even thinking about it, so just don't, OK? He's going to be fine.:  
  
Trowa resumed staring at the door.   
  
------------------------------  
  
Five minutes passed. Then ten. Then twenty. Even Trowa could tell that the silence was becoming oppressive, but he couldn't think of anything to say.   
  
Suddenly he felt something stirring at the edge of his consciousness, pushing at the wards Wufei had erected. "Wufei!" he said urgently. "I felt something!"  
  
"Yes, I know. Wait a moment, the danger remains until the crystal is destroyed," Wufei said, pressing his hand against the door, his brow furrowed in concentration.   
  
They all heard a sound like breaking glass, and Wufei abruptly dropped the ward, pushing the door open. Despite the fact that Wufei was right in front of the doorway, Trowa managed to beat him through it. His eyes took in the room in a glance - Sally standing by the fire, staring intently into it, Rashid, standing by the bed, trying unsuccessfully to convince Quatre to lie still... Quatre, who was still pale, but struggling to sit up and argue with Rashid at the same time.   
  
He broke off as soon as Trowa entered the room, his head automatically swiveling around to face the door, a brilliant smile lighting up his face. "Trowa!"  
  
Without really knowing how he covered the distance between them, Trowa suddenly found himself crouching on the bed, with Quatre in his arms. He was dimly aware of Wufei calling the others for something, them making some sort of magical effort, but all of his attention was focused on the man in his arms. After a few seconds he heard Quatre's magical laugher in his mind. :Trowa, I need to breathe.:  
  
He immediately relaxed his arms fractionally, and Quatre leaned back in his arms to look at his face. "I'm sorry," he whispered softly. "I didn't mean to worry you so much. I would never, ever leave you."  
  
Trowa shook his head silently, and Quatre embraced him. :I told you already, I almost lost you once, I won't let it happen again. And if I ever catch you thinking about killing yourself over me again, you'll regret it!: he said fiercely, and Trowa stifled a chuckle of his own. It was amazing, just being with Quatre seemed to make everything else inconsequential.   
  
"Are you all right?" he asked anxiously, checking over Quatre with his eyes. He looked all right, but there was an awful lot of clothing in the way...  
  
"I'm fine!" Quatre said, sounding frustrated. "Will you please explain to Rashid that I can heal myself perfectly well, and that I don't have to spend the rest of the day in bed?"  
  
"I think Rashid has the right idea," Trowa responded, looking at the red stain that covered all of the bed and a good deal of the floor, too. It took a lot of blood to make a stain that big. "You lost a lot of energy to that bitch, and then you had to heal yourself. That takes a lot out of you. I thought we already had a discussion about this," he added sternly.   
  
"Guys, what are they doing?" Sally asked as she walked over, trying in vain to get some of the blood off her hands by wiping them on her pants. Her eyes were fixed on the other three, who were frozen in place, staring into space.  
  
"They're going after her!" Quatre gasped. "We have to help them! Give me your hands!" Trowa grasped Quatre's hands, then suddenly they both leaped out of their bodies and into the merge the other three were performing. They joined it with an ease that was startling, and found themselves hovering over the Oz camp.   
  
:Hey Quatre! Glad you could join the party!: Duo exclaimed happily. :You OK?:  
  
:I'm fine. What's going on?:  
  
:Wufei says that the bitch who stabbed you is hiding in that tent there,: Duo said, directing their consciousness in the correct direction. :There's a shield over it, but he says that she did something when she created a line of power to you that will allow us to get at her.:  
  
:Found it!: Wufei exclaimed with some relish. Suddenly they were inside.   
  
There were a number of unfamiliar people with glowing gold eyes rushing around a single still figure in the center of the room.   
  
:That's her,: Trowa growled, identifying her by the blond hair he'd seen through Quatre's eyes.  
  
:Yeah, I'd recognize those freaky eyebrows anywhere,: Duo muttered. :What's wrong with her?: It didn't take a genius to see that something was wrong - she was absolutely unmoving, staring into space, a lax expression on her face.   
  
:All of her attention and power was tied up in the spell,: Wufei said with a definitely satisfied edge to his voice. :Her personal shields are down as well, and they haven't realized that she left us an avenue to get in. She's helpless.: He didn't sound particularly comfortable as he said this last thing. Trowa had a pretty good idea why - striking someone who was not only female but helpless as well had to go against everything Wufei had been taught.   
  
Trowa had no such reservations. :Kill her,: he growled.   
  
:Hn,: Heero said in agreement.   
  
:Sounds good to me,: Duo said grimly. :Lets do this.:  
  
It was remarkably easy. She was helpless, as Wufei had said. It took only a moment of concentration to draw in their vast power, and then a single spell stopped her heart. It was far more painless than Trowa would have preferred, but there was no mistaking what happened when her body suddenly dropped to the ground. With her death, they lost their access and found themselves outside the camp again.   
  
There was a moment of silence, then they were suddenly back in their own bodies, back at the fort. Trowa blinked several times and realized Quatre was still sitting in front of him, and embraced him again.  
  
"Aw, that's cute," Duo said from across the room. He was grinning like an idiot, then yelped when Heero gave his braid a firm tug. "Heero!" he complained, but Heero didn't seem to be paying much attention to him.  
  
"Inefficient," Heero commented, sounding displeased.  
  
"Huh?" Duo stopped complaining to stare at his lover.  
  
"There has to be a better way," Heero said unhelpfully with a deep frown as Wufei turned and strode out of the room, which was empty of other people. Trowa suspected that Sally and Rashid had gone to find a mage to tell them what was going on.   
  
"He's talking about Dorothy," Quatre said quietly. Everyone turned to stare at him.  
  
"Who's Dorothy?" Duo asked with a frown.  
  
"The mage who stabbed me. She's Treize's cousin, I should have known that she would be a mage as well. I met her several times when I was younger." Quatre's gaze was distant, and he bit his lip.  
  
"Quatre, you better not tell me that you're sorry we killed her, after how worried we were about you," Duo said warningly.   
  
"I'm sorry that we had to kill her," Quatre said in response, "but she had to die, you're right. That's what Heero's talking about, too."  
  
"What?"  
  
"It's inefficient - we have to come up with a better way of killing their mages." Quatre smiled wryly. "We finally got one."  
  
-------------------------------  
  
It took Wufei several minutes to find Sally. Rashid found him almost immediately, demanding to know what had happened. Wufei told him to go ask the others, and continued the search. When he finally found her, she was standing on top of the wall, gazing out at the setting sun and the dark splotches on the ground where blood had stained the desert sand. She glanced at him when he stepped off the stairs, then went back to her study of the scene without even acknowledging him.   
  
Wufei did his best to quell the irritation that instantly rose up at her actions. He hadn't come here looking for a fight. Besides, he had ignored her often enough, and she never seemed to take offense.   
  
For a long moment neither spoke. Then Sally suddenly said, "How long do you think it will take?"  
  
Her question caught him by surprise, and he tried, without success, to determine what she was talking about. What did she think he was, a mindreader? Well, actually he was, but that was besides the point. He wasn't about to use his powers in such a frivolous manner. "How long will what take?" he asked crossly, sounding more like an angry child than he liked.  
  
Sally didn't seem to notice his temper. She never did - it was one of the most interesting and irritating things about her. "The sand. How long do you think it will be before the bloodstains from the fighting are gone?"  
  
Wufei looked down at the sands. How much of the blood there was he responsible for? How much had he spilled personally? How much of it was his own?   
  
"It depends," he said finally. "This is the desert, if one of those big storms comes up, there won't be much of anything left. But if there isn't one... stains like that can last for a very long time. Years, even. In my..." he swallowed. "In my homeland, there was a war several hundred years ago. The bloodstains are gone, but you can still go to the final battlefield and see the scars on the land." He fell silent, remembering the trip with his family. He'd been a child then, trying to reign in his excitement at seeing the famous battlefield. His excitement had faded quickly as he used his fledgling powers to sense the aura of the place, a stench that hung over it like a cloud. Images of the battle had flown through his mind, and he immediately had pulled away and demanded to leave. They'd humored him, but he could still hear the screams of the men as they died, still see the limp bodies lying all over the ground, for as far as his eyes could see...  
  
Sally let out a soft sigh that brought him out of his memories. "That's what I thought," she said, turning away from the blood. She leaned back against the outer wall, resting a hand on the sword she still wore. Finally she turned to look at him. "Did you want something?" she asked.   
  
"What?"  
  
"You came looking for me," she pointed out, raising an eyebrow.  
  
Wufei suddenly realized that he didn't know why he'd been looking for her. "We killed the mage, the one who attacked Quatre," he said uncomfortably.   
  
"Good," she said, her voice echoing some of the satisfaction Duo had showed when they killed the woman.   
  
"And Quatre will be fine," Wufei finished. He expected her to show relief, joy, and was surprised - again - when she clenched her fists and dropped her head slightly. "What?" he asked, wondering again what he was doing here.   
  
"He almost died," Sally said softly.   
  
"You saved him," Wufei said with a frown.  
  
"You... you don't understand how close it was. His heart stopped beating for a few seconds, because of the blood loss. My hand... it brushed against the crystal and I pulled it out, and his heart started again." She took another deep breath and let it out slowly. "It was too close. He could have died, if I'd been a second later, if my hand had been an inch to the side... All of our hopes rest with you guys. If one of you falls..."  
  
"We will not die," Wufei said sharply. "And we will not fail."  
  
Sally shot him a worried look. "But they came so close this time... what if next time... you..." she abruptly cut herself off.   
  
Wufei's eyes widened as he caught her slight slip, but he decided not to mention it now. "He did survive, and we killed the one responsible. They lost a mage today - it was a bad blow for them."  
  
"I know. Congratulations."  
  
Wufei nodded his head slightly in response to her comment. "I sent for you when we found out what the problem was, and you saved Quatre. That's why I came up here, to thank you."  
  
Her eyes widened at his statement, and she stared at him. "You did?"  
  
Wufei inclined his head slightly. "Thank you, Sally."  
  
  
  
Well, there's the next section. Sorry about the long delay, it's been a long couple of... (counting on toes and fingers and running out of digits) wow, it's been a very long time! Anyway, I hope I didn't get too out of character for Wufei and Trowa in that section - I have the hardest time with them under the best of circumstances. I had an easier time with Trowa this time than ever before, possibly because I wrote most of his part when I was absolutely exhausted and mostly numb. Not sure what that says about either of us.   
Anyway, I'll start writing the next section as soon as possible, but no promises as to when it will be out.   
Marika 6/25/01  
  
  
  
  
  



	17. Part 16

Smoke rose in huge billowing clouds from the remains of the dirty village. In all honesty, it wasn't in that much worse condition now than it had been when they arrived. Well, it was, actually, but it had been run-down when they arrived. They'd done these pathetic humans a favor when they destroyed it.  
  
Now he had his forces occupied sorting through the villagers they'd flushed out when they burned the place, quickly setting aside and possessing the able-bodied, and killing the rest. Out of the corner of his host's eye, he noticed a few humans - one woman and a couple of very small ones - children, they were called - trying to sneak away into the woods, away from the burning village.   
  
So far no one seemed to have noticed them - an act that he would have to punish someone for, but for now, it was enough to destroy them. He started funneling power into his host's body, preparing to strike.   
  
He hesitated for a moment. Something was wrong - the magic wasn't flowing properly. He examined the body he'd taken, and back in his own world, he felt his lips curl into a smile, revealing jagged teeth beneath. His host's body mirrored that expression, although it wasn't nearly as effective. The host was attempting to stop him, to keep him from killing those humans.   
  
How amusing.  
  
Also not to be tolerated. He slammed up more walls around the mind of the human who had once controlled this body, sealing him off completely. Then he drew more of his own power and that stored in his world into the body, then sent it arching down towards the humans.  
  
In seconds there was nothing left of them but a few ashes blowing in the stiff breeze.  
  
He turned back to look at the destruction. They'd see how long those stupid mages stayed in their fortress now.  
  
  
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It had been almost a week since the last Oz attack, and Duo and Heero had put the free time to good use. It might not be a good way of using energy that might better be spent in fighting Oz soldiers, but it was also necessary. Duo was in one the deepest sleeps that he could ever remember when he was suddenly jolted awake by a scream, one both mental and physical, and the sound made his gut clench.  
  
:Quatre!: he cried as he recognized the source, and without thinking about it, he conjured himself to the room that Trowa and Quatre shared, with Heero an instant behind him.   
  
They arrived in the room, which was dimly lit by torches (mage-lights being deemed too much of a waste of energy for normal use), and Duo saw Trowa kneeling on the bed beside an unresponsive Quatre, cradling him in his arms. "What is it?" he asked, immediately moving to the bed.  
  
"He's not here," Trowa replied quietly, his eyes fixed on Quatre's face. Now that he looked, Duo noticed that Quatre's eyes were wide open, but not seeing anything in front of him. Shit.   
  
"Then where the fuck is he?!" he demanded.  
  
Trowa only stared at him silently.   
  
"Why him again?" Duo demanded next. He knew that the others didn't have any answers for him, but he needed to get this out of his system. It seemed like Quatre kept getting hit over and over and over again. What was it about him that attracted Oz's attention?  
  
"He's the weakest," Wufei said shortly from the doorway as he stepped inside. He took one look at Trowa and raised a hand to forestall bloodshed. "I mean no disrespect, but it is the truth. He's been leading us, and is most vulnerable to attack - that makes him the logical target."  
  
Heero grunted agreement to that statement, his eyes still fixed on the pair on the bed.   
  
"It's not an attack," Trowa said quietly, his eyes never leaving Quare's face.  
  
"What? I thought you said..."  
  
"I said that I didn't know where he is, not that it was an attack," Trowa said, sparing Duo a glance. "He's having a vision."  
  
"How do you know?"  
  
Trowa hesitated for a fraction of a second, then answered, "I recognize the symptoms. This is what it usually looks like."  
  
Duo stared at him, anger beginning to well up. "You mean this has happened to him before?"  
  
Trowa shook his head. "It usually happens to me," he said unwillingly. "Quatre's been helping me through the worst of it, but I recognize what it looks like from his memories of me."  
  
For a second Duo was just shocked that Quatre and Trowa's minds were linked at a level where their thoughts were automatically accessible to each other, and then what Trowa had just said actually caught up with his brain. "This... has been happening for a while?" he asked slowly, determined not to start cursing. Not yet.   
  
"Since before we came here," Trowa responded, avoiding their eyes. "It's because of the Earth, he thinks. I see what will happen if the demons take over. Mostly what will happen to the world itself, but..." he swallowed, and closed his one visible eye for a second. "Quatre's been helping me with it," he repeated himself.  
  
If it bothers Trowa enough that he's showing an actual reaction just thinking about it, it's probably pretty close to Hell, Duo thought, his anger building. "And neither of you thought that this was something we should know about? And if you tell me that Quatre didn't want to worry anyone, I'm going to rip your hair out by the roots and stuff it down your throat! You of all people should know that Quatre does not need any more on his head right now!" he shouted, his voice rising with every word. "Do you trust us or not?!" He felt Heero's hand on his arm and his presence in his mind, and with difficulty, calmed himself.   
  
"Never mind," he said with a bitter frown and quick shake of his hand. He spun around so fast that his braid flew around to strike him in the face. With an unconscious reaction, he raised a hand to keep it from hitting his nose, tossed it back over his shoulder, and started for the door.(1)   
  
"Duo!" Trowa exclaimed, actually abandoning Quatre as he jumped to his feet, reaching the door with a few long steps to grab Duo's shoulder. "It isn't like that!"  
  
"Then explain what it is," Duo snarled. "Because it sure seems like that to me! Dark Lady, after all we've been through, you'd think we could trust each other! You I can understand, but I would have thought that Quatre would trust us, if for no other reason than we need to trust each other!"  
  
"*I* trust you," Trowa said firmly, with no hint of hesitation in his voice. "So does Quatre. This isn't about trust."  
  
"Then what is it about?" Duo asked darkly, glowering at the taller boy.  
  
"Power."  
  
"What do you mean?" Wufei asked, taking a step forward, closer to the bed where Quatre still lay, eyes still open and unseeing.   
  
"We are our power. The longer we are... the more we use our powers, the more obvious it is. We start acting, not so much as ourselves, but merely as vessels for the powers. It's a very gradual process, but it's happening, to all of us." He stared directly at Duo and raised an eyebrow. "In fact, you just confirmed part of that theory."  
  
"I did?"  
  
"You swore by the Dark Lady."  
  
Duo felt a chill run down his spine. In the religion (well, it was more a set of beliefs than any organized religion) of the faeries, most of the deities were either animals and plants. There were only two who weren't, and those were both female, since females were the creators of life. One was the Bright Lady, mother of life, and it was by him that he usually swore. The other was the Dark Lady, who escorted the dead out of this world. He'd avoided even mentioning her name before, because of an old and probably foolish superstition that mentioning her name brought her attention to you. He had enough problems with death as it was.   
  
Duo rubbed his eyes wearily. This was all like some sort of nightmare. The next thing you knew he'd look like a skeleton and kill anyone he touched. "What does this have to do with Quatre?" he asked, trying not to look at Heero. He didn't want to see Heero's face, his eyes, not now. Not when Heero was the mage of life and he was Shinigami.   
  
"He needs this, desperately," Trowa said, a hint of exasperation in his voice. "The same way that I need to be alone, away from people, he needs just as much to help people, protect them. I... let him think that some things were worse than they were - this helps him get rid of the demands his power is making without him sneaking out of the fort to go heal people."  
  
Duo tossed his bangs out of his face and stared at Trowa. "Please tell me he hasn't done that."  
  
"Not since we left Sank, I saw to that," Trowa said with definite satisfaction in his voice. "But his power took control of him totally before, it makes the power have more influence over him now. It's not about not trusting you - he trusts all of you with his life, he has no choice, but he needs to do these things. Please don't confront him about this."  
  
Duo sighed, running a hand through his bangs. He could feel Heero pressing against his mind, but he didn't want to talk yet. He couldn't. Besides, what could Heero say? He was becoming an incarnation of Death itself. How much longer before they could barely stand to be around each other? "I won't. Sorry I yelled at you, I'm just tired of him hurting himself to protect us."  
  
"I'm watching him," Trowa replied, then turned back to the bed.  
  
"So what have you seen?" Duo asked, taking a few steps forward to look at Quatre. "What is he seeing?"   
  
Quatre suddenly let out a shriek and sat bolt upright in the bed. He took a couple of panicked breaths, then his eyes automatically turned to Trowa, and he latched onto the taller boy like a leach, holding onto him with all his strength as his shoulders shook with dry sobs. Duo felt Trowa immediately begin projecting soothing emotions and murmuring quietly to Quatre, and blinked. He'd just felt more emotion from Trowa then he could ever remember actually seeing on his face.  
  
:You OK, Q?: Duo asked quietly when Quatre had stopped sobbing. :What did you see?:  
  
:Oh, gods, they're all dead,: Quatre said, the pain in his voice painful to listen to.  
  
:Who? Is there going to be an attack?: Heero asked, but Quatre shook his head.  
  
:Not here. Treize... or whatever is controlling Treize... took a good portion of his forces and made a portal to a small village at the border of my land,: he replied, apparently not even noticing when he called the Winner estate 'his land'. :They destroyed it, and killed everyone there, every man, woman, and child...: his voice caught as he turned his face away, tears still leaking out of his tightly closed eyes. :I saw it, the smoke, the blood... I heard their screams, and then...: he shuddered. :I got caught up *in* them. I felt them, every single one of them, as they died.: Trowa held him as he sobbed some more, but Duo was more interested in the aura, the cloud around Quatre. Normally Quatre glowed like a miniature sun, but now his aura was dimmed, as if it was clouded over.  
  
Duo frowned, and reached with his power to Quatre, and felt a pool of his own unique power within the blond mage, where it absolutely did not belong.   
  
:Guys?: There was a hint of panic in Trowa's voice. :He won't calm down. Something is wrong.:  
  
:I think I know what it is,: Duo replied, reaching out and placing a hand on Quatre's head. He *pushed*, and Quatre slumped down again. :I don't know how the fuck he managed it, but he didn't just feel those people die, he actually experienced their deaths. It's almost like he took part in them. No mind, human, mage, or otherwise, is equipped to handle that, that's why he's having a fit now. I can remove what's causing the problem, and then there's a spell that will keep this from happening again. I think.:  
  
:You think?:  
  
:Even Gente was never so connected to the people that this happened. I'm making it up as I go along, guys.:  
  
:That is not encouraging,: Trowa remarked, but he turned his body slightly to allow Duo better access to Quatre's head. That told Duo, more than anything else, that he had been completely honest before when he said that he trusted him. If he was trusting him with Quatre's safety...  
  
Duo reached forward and lay his palm on Quatre's forehead, his own eyes narrowing in concentration. Quatre murmured silently in his sleep as he resisted the intrusion in his mind, but then his mind, even unconscious, recognized Duo's mind, and instantly Duo was granted access. Trust indeed...  
  
Duo quickly drew the essence of death from Quatre's mind, leaving the memories and everything else untouched. The memories Quatre would have to deal with on his own, but he would be able to. It was the essence of death itself that he hadn't been able to handle. Duo withdrew from his mind and whispered the words to the spell that would seal Quatre's spirit from any further incursions of that sort. It would, in effect, keep Duo's power out of Quatre.   
  
"All right, it's done, I think." Duo concentrated briefly and healed what little damage his intrusion had caused. Then he stepped back as Quatre woke up.   
  
Although his arms were still wrapped around Trowa's shoulders, Quatre immediately turned to look at Duo. "Thank you very much," he said before disentangling himself. His face was still pale and there were tear-streaks remaining on his cheeks, but his expression was composed. "Come on, we have to go deal with this."  
  
  
---------------------------------------------------  
  
  
Wufei managed to keep his face composed as he stared at the devastation, although it was a struggle. The last time he had seen something like this, it had been when his clan was destroyed. He shoved back the painful memories as he surveyed the destruction. This was, if anything, worse than when his clan had been attacked, because it was so obvious that it was intentional. The way that each of the houses had carefully been burned to the ground, the way that most of the bodies were laid out in a straight line - all of it pointed to a very carefully planned, carefully orchestrated massacre.   
  
He hadn't missed the fact that there was a decided lack of able-bodied men among the dead. Treize must have taken them all when he swept through here. More soldiers for his forces.  
  
Wufei did not look at Duo, not wanting to see the whirlpool of energy as the power from this atrocity entered Duo. It wasn't Duo's fault, and he bore the other mage no ill will for it, but that didn't mean that he wanted to see it.   
  
"Is there anyone..." Duo asked, then trailed off softly, probably knowing the pointlessness of his comment. If there had been any survivors at all, Quatre would have rescued them immediately. The fact that he had just stood there, looking around, since stepping through the portal was enough to tell them that there was no one left.  
  
"Why did they do this?" Quatre asked softly, his eyes glazed and vacant. "Most of these people couldn't have held a sword for us, even if we wanted them to. They were just farmers."  
  
"They're trying to draw us out," Heero said flatly, and Wufei agreed, although a part of him rebelled at the injustice, the weakness of using innocents this way. He didn't say anything out loud, though.  
  
Months ago he would have. But he'd since come to realize that even though they didn't speak about it as much as he did, his companions were also aware of honor and justice, and that it would be bothering them, this use of innocents against them, even if they never said anything. Even more important than that, he'd learned that he could actually make things worse by always talking about it, reminding of the things that they were trying to forget. He could never forget them, but that did not make it right for him to hurt the others by reminding them.   
  
"We can't possibly protect everybody," Quatre murmured quietly, leading Wufei to believe that he'd already known the answer to his question before he asked it.  
  
"That's what they want," Duo said darkly, but without any expression on his face. "The bastards want us to run ourselves ragged trying to protect every single village, and when we're worn down..."   
  
There was a short silence as they all thought about what would happen. Finally Duo looked at Quatre and said, "So what do we do?"  
  
There was no mistaking it when Quatre stiffened, nor the fact that he refused to meet their gaze for several seconds. After what seemed like a very long time, he quietly said, "I... I don't know. I... I can't make this kind of decision."  
  
Duo took a step towards Quatre, his expression sympathetic. "Come on, Q. You know that we'll go along with whatever you say."  
  
"No, you don't understand, my power..."  
  
Suddenly Wufei understood. "Your power won't let you decide, will it?" he asked, and Quatre nodded his head frantically.  
  
"I'm supposed to protect people, but whatever I do, they die," he said, and Wufei could see the power swirling around him as it responded to the conflict within. "If we try to protect the towns... it can't possibly work, and we'll lose the war, and then people die. If we leave the towns unprotected to fight the war, then those people will die. I... I just can't choose! It won't let me!" he said, his voice near hysterical, and Wufei realized that he was very close to cracking.   
  
Without thinking about it, he took several steps to Quatre, grabbed his shoulders, and gave him a hard shake. "Don't let it control you!" he said harshly. "You have strength, use it!"  
  
Quatre looked up at him, and for a moment their eyes met and Wufei felt the strangest sensation, as if Quatre was searching within him for something. Suddenly something within Quatre hardened, and his face because composed. "You're right," he said simply. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, and Wufei saw the energy around him suddenly get jerked back into it's proper formations, flowing around him like a cloud but not sparking or flashing. "Come on," he said, opening his eyes. "We might as well get back. We've got to decide what to do, and there's nothing we can do here."  
  
Duo gasped and stumbled, and Heero only barely managed to catch him. His eyes were wide as he stared into space. "The fort! It's under attack!"  
  
  
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Duo slashed at the Ozzies trying to get at the walls of the fort. He'd felt it when they started to assault the shields, not with human fighters, which was pointless and used up almost no energy, but with magic. He'd felt that attack almost as if it was physical blows, and it took a great deal of will power to muster the concentration required to cast a spell to return him to the fort.   
  
They'd arrived to find the battle already underway. Trieze must have been waiting for them to go investigate the destroyed village, and launched his attack as soon as they left. The Manguanacs and Sally were already very busy fighting when they arrived, although the men gave glad shouts when they saw that Quatre was back. Duo conjured his magic scythe back from wherever it had been (he was getting very good at using it) and used it to cut his way through the troops nearest to him. This was absolutely ridiculous. Did the Ozzies really think that they'd get anywhere this way? All they were doing was getting their own troops killed.   
  
He felt all of the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, and his wariness increased appropriately. Here was a sense completely unconnected with his magic, something developed and honed on the streets, integral to his survival. He wasn't exactly sure where it came from, but he trusted it and always listened to it. He'd felt it when a robbery was about to go bad, or when someone was on his tail. He'd felt it days before the plague struck, just when the rumors started, and he'd been trying to convince himself that it was nothing when the faery village had been wiped out.  
  
Just thinking about it was enough to remind him that the faeries had died because of those he was fighting here, and he grimly kept his eyes open for the newest threat.   
Suddenly he was in a bubble of calm in the storm of the battle. He looked around wildly at the circle of soldiers surrounding him. What the hell...   
  
A tall figure stepped out of the battle, the soldiers seeming to melt out of his way. That alone was enough to set off warnings in Duo's skull. That was the way that witch Dorothy had moved in the battle, every soldier moving to facilitate her motion in a way no normal army could do. All of which meant that this was another of their mages.  
  
His eyes widened as he recognized the long blond hair on the figure standing in front of him. "Zechs," he hissed, staring at the man without the mask, his eyes glowing that unnatural yellow color.   
  
"Milliardo, please," the man said pleasantly, a hint of a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. One hand rested on an extravagantly decorated sword hanging at his waist, but he made no move to draw it. Duo kept his scythe in front of him warily as the circle of space around him became even bigger.   
  
"Get the fuck out of him," Duo said, wishing that he knew of a spell that could force the demon out of Zechs' body.   
  
Zechs... Milliardo... the demon controlling him threw back his head and laughed. "Oh why should I? This is a fine body... it has so much power, so much energy... so much more so than anyone else on this pathetic planet. Only the five of you would make better hosts." The slight smirk blossomed into a full-fledged smile, and Duo took an involuntary step back. He wasn't a coward, but he did have a very good sense of self-preservation, and right now all of his instincts were saying that he wanted to be very far from here. "A pity that we cannot use your bodies."   
  
"Yeah, well I guess that just sucks for you," Duo commented sarcastically, glancing around. "Any reason that you called off them, other than you wanted to have a chat?" he asked, jerking his head at the circle around him. "Cause I'm a little busy right now and I don't really want to waste my time talking to you when I could be killing something." The sad thing was that was the truth - he'd much rather be killing Ozzies than talking to Zechs.   
"As a matter of fact, I did. I have some visitors for you, and I wanted to make sure that they didn't get hurt in all of this."  
  
"Really?" Duo drawled, eyes narrowing. "Like you care about anything except killing me."  
  
He shrugged slightly and smiled again, then turned his head to look behind him. "They've been anxious to see you," he commented.  
  
Duo's eyes widened and he paled slightly as he saw several figures come out of the chaos. They were very small, barely reaching Zechs' hips, and appeared to be guarded by a troop of soldiers. For a second he thought that they were children, but soon realized he was mistaken. There was no mistaking the bluish skin and wings.  
  
Oh, no. Please, no.  
  
  
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Heero walked around, carefully stabbing the soldiers left lying on the ground. As usual, when the enemy had sounded their retreat, they'd left the majority of their wounded behind, taking only the few that they considered worth saving. The rest they left behind to the mercy of the defenders. Heero always made sure to kill every one of them before Duo burned the bodies. In his experience, loose ends tended to come back to haunt you.  
  
Normally it was almost automatic, but today he was having trouble concentrating on his mission. Something was wrong. With Duo.  
  
Something had been wrong since early in the battle, but he hadn't been able to figure out what, since they'd been on opposite sides of the fort and Duo refused to answer his mental calls. All he got in return for his questions had been a few vague comments about some 'trouble' that Duo had 'taken care of'. The very fact that Duo had been so close-mouthed was causing Heero no little alarm. It had been in the middle of a battle, but Duo still usually managed to keep up a steady stream of cursing and shouting at the 'Ozzies' that was audible on a number of levels. Even when he fell silent, it didn't usually feel like this.   
  
Something was wrong.   
  
Heero joined the others at the gate of the fort as the Manguanacs and Sally were moving inside, looking around for Duo to perform the ritual burning of the bodies.  
  
Duo was nowhere to be seen. Heero was about to find him and demand some answers when Quatre spoke directly into his mind. :Heero, go to Duo. He needs you. He's in your room.:  
  
Heero felt a stab of alarm but refused to let it show on his face. He grunted and then flicked his eyes towards the field of corpses questioningly.   
  
:We'll take care of it,: Quatre told him. :Go! Duo needs you now!:  
  
Heero didn't waste any more time, conjuring himself directly to the room that he and Duo shared. It was located deep within the walls of the fort, safe from any attack, but that also meant that there weren't any windows, and it tended to get very dark if there weren't enough torches lit. Duo hadn't lit any, and the only light in the room was that filtering in through the crack under the door.   
  
Heero frowned slightly, looking around. He could tell that Duo was here, but his mate was shielding his presence, so he couldn't feel where he was. And, of course, it was too dark to actually see anything.   
  
He had conjured himself to stand directly in front of the door. There ought to be a torch right there, and in a few seconds his outstretched hand found it, waiting in its socket in the wall. He touched the end and concentrated, and it caught fire. The sudden light was harsh to his eyes, and it was several more seconds before they adjusted enough for him to look around. He didn't light any more torches - something told him that Duo needed the darkness right now.  
  
It took him another few seconds to locate his love. Duo was crouched in one of the corners, hiding in the deepest shadows, hugging his knees to his chest with his braid hanging over one shoulder. He seemed to sense when Heero's attention fell on him, and lifted his head to give Heero a weak smile. "Heya Heero, how ya doing?" he greeted him.  
  
Heero stiffened as he got a good look at Duo's eyes. They were one of the things he loved most about Duo, right behind his sense of humor, his love of life, his cheerfulness, and his braid. He had been secretly fascinated for a very long while by Duo's eyes. He wasn't sure if it was because of his power or something else, but Duo's eyes didn't reflect light of any kind, not mage-light, not fire, not even from the stars overhead, and it seemed to him that if his eyes reflected anything, it would be the stars. But they never did - his eyes were always just inky pools without anything to disrupt the dark color.  
  
No, the light in Duo's eyes always came from within, and sometimes it made something in Heero ache. He knew what his own eyes looked like - dead, almost reflective surfaces that never showed anything of how he felt. Duo's eyes were the windows to his soul, and Heero loved them.  
  
But as he stood here in the dim room, he could quite clearly see the flickering light from the lone torch reflected back towards him from Duo's eyes.  
  
The moment of shock was quickly followed by a white-hot rage that threatened to consume all rational thought. What had they done to him! What had they done to Duo? He was going to find out who had hurt his love, and he was going to *annihilate* them.  
  
Duo must have seen the change of expression on his face (slight as it was) because he slowly got to his feet, a worried expression on his face. "You all right, Heero?" he asked. "Did anyone get hurt?"  
  
"You did. What happened?" Heero asked flatly.   
  
Duo tried and just barely failed to hide his wince. "Nah, I'm fine," Duo said with a careless shrug. "See?" he held both of his hands out to the side. "No injuries even."  
  
Heero didn't even bother to respond to such an obvious falsehood. "What happened?" he repeated.  
  
"Damn it, Heero, do the words 'let it go' mean anything to you?" Duo asked, dropping his head so that his bangs hid his eyes.  
  
Heero considered briefly, then said, "No. They hurt you. I want to know what they did, and who did it, so I can help you and kill them."  
  
Duo chuckled softly. "Always the efficient one, eh Heero? What if they aren't the problem? What if the problem's with me? What if it's been with me all along?"  
  
Heero frowned in confusion. "What?"  
  
Duo sighed. "It's nothing. Hey, you up for a go-round in bed?" he asked with a leer, running his hands down his sides suggestively. "I got a lot of energy right now."  
  
Alarmed, Heero took a step back. They'd never slept together right after a battle, it always seemed like tainting something sacred with something so incredibly dirty... for Duo to suggest that they... now... things were worse than he ever could have imagined. Something had happened that had made Duo... not care.   
  
"No," he said firmly, pushing Duo away. Duo always looked good to him, and if he managed to get his hands on him, he'd never be able to concentrate on the important thing, which was helping Duo. Heero wasn't very good at dealing with other people, but he knew that sleeping with Duo right now would be the absolute worst thing that he could do. It would cement whatever was in Duo's mind right now, convince him that he was right, if he wasn't talked out of it. "I want to know what happened. What did they do?"  
  
Duo gave up his half-hearted attempt at seduction just as quickly as he'd started them and turned away, crossing his arms across his chest and facing that dark corner. "Let it go, Heero, I really don't want to talk about this."  
  
"You need to talk about this," Heero stated with certainty.  
  
Duo didn't answer.  
  
Heero waited for several minutes, then went over to Duo and grabbed his arm, roughly turning him around. "What happened?!" he demanded.  
  
"Damn it, Heero, let go of me!" Duo said, easily freeing himself and retreating back another couple of feet. His eyes were wide and they flicked back and forth like those of a trapped animal as he flattened himself into the corner again. "Heero, I can't..." he said before cutting himself off. He turned his head away with a wince and then sank back down into a crouch, hugging himself. He stared into space, and Heero got the distinct impression that he wasn't seeing the room at all.  
  
There were times that he was grateful for Odin for training him the way he had, teaching him to set aside his emotions to get the mission done. It made him stronger in many situations where others faltered because they let their emotions get the best of them - Quatre had this problem more frequently then any of the others. Other times he wished that Odin was still alive so that he could kill him slowly and painfully for what he'd done. This situation fell into the latter category. He didn't know how to help Duo - Quatre would have known, would know how to get Duo to talk and help him get better, but Quatre had said that Duo needed *him*.  
  
Here he'd been treating Duo roughly when that was probably the opposite of what he needed.   
  
Silently Heero moved forward and crouched on the floor next to Duo, who gave no indication that he saw or noticed Heero in any way.  
  
Moving slowly, carefully, so that he didn't startle Duo, Heero slid up next to him and put his arms around the other boy, drawing him in close until Duo was sitting in his lap. He felt Duo stiffen as soon as his arms touched him, but he refused to let go, even when Duo struggled weakly to free himself.   
  
"I have you," Heero told him firmly. "I won't let anything happen to you. Just tell me, whenever you're ready." Then he fell silent. Heero had never been good at just talking, even if it was to comfort Duo. He maneuvered Duo until Duo's head was resting against his chest, figuring that the sound of his own heartbeat could help soothe Duo until he could talk.   
  
After a very long time, Duo relaxed slightly, so that he was no longer a bundle of knotted muscles. Some time after that, he finally whispered, "I'm a killer."  
  
"What?" Heero asked, trying not to stiffen himself, being careful to keep his voice soft. Inwardly he frowned. He thought that Duo had finally gotten past the point where he was punishing himself because of what had happened before, because of what his power happened to be.  
  
"I'm a killer. That's the problem."  
  
Heero hesitated for several seconds, then said slowly, "What did they do to you?"  
  
Duo stiffened again, and Heero's arms unconsciously tightened around the other boy. "I told you, it wasn't what they did, it's what I did. I killed them," he whispered.  
  
Heero was beginning to get the hang of this, and waited several seconds before asking, "Who?"  
  
By now Duo was one big pile of knotted muscles and tension, but with a suddenness that alarmed Heero, he relaxed. "I killed the faeries," he said softly.  
  
"The faeries?"  
  
Duo shook his head slightly against Heero's chest. "I know it can't really have been them - they've been dead for years, and they would never try..." he cut himself off. "But it looked like them, it sounded like them... I almost believed, for a second, that it really was them. Right up until they tried to kill me."  
  
Heero shifted his head slightly so that he could stare down at Duo's face. Duo smiled sadly. "They didn't have a choice. Zechs created them. Remember why they called us 'master'?" He paused for a few seconds, then continued, "A mage, like us, first made the faeries. We could probably make some more of them, too, if we really wanted to. Zechs must have created them - they had to do what he wanted. And he created them to get to me." Duo let out a short, bitter bark of laughter. "And it worked."  
  
"No," Heero said, tightening his arms around Duo. Duo couldn't leave him.   
  
"Look at me, Heero," Duo said, sounding tired. "You saw it when you came in. They finally got to me. They didn't kill me, but... having to kill those faeries... it did something to me. They were innocents, and they looked so much like my family... they screamed as they died. They begged me not to do it."  
  
"They were the enemy," Heero told him.   
  
"It doesn't matter, Heero," Duo responded wearily. "I know this is kinda tough for you, but it really doesn't matter. I kill everyone. I *am* Death, moreso with each passing day. And I just don't care anymore. I used to hate it, but now..." he shook his head slightly. "It just doesn't matter. I'm broken."  
  
"No, you're not!" Heero told him.  
  
"Heero, I lived on the streets for most of my life. You think I don't know the signs? It's just a matter of time until I die."  
  
"No. You can't give up."  
  
"Heero, this isn't exactly something I have control over," Duo complained, sitting up slightly and pushing Heero away so that he could look into Heero's eyes. Heero noted that he could now see his reflection in Duo's eyes. "It's just the way it is. I'll keep fighting, but you better tell Quatre not to depend on me too much."  
  
"No."  
  
"No? Heero, I thought we already had this discussion. It's just the way it is."  
  
"No. I need you."  
  
Duo opened his mouth, then shut it. "What?"  
  
"I need you here," Heero said, putting a little emphasis on the last word to make his meaning clear. "With me. I can't have that if you give up."  
  
Duo scrambled to his feet. "Damn it, Heero! You don't understand! I *am* Death! That's the way it works! People close to me die! You didn't see me today... see what I did to them - how I am when I fight..."  
  
"Do you love me?"  
  
"Of course I do, you big idiot! That's not the point! I don't want you dead!"  
  
"Yes it is," Heero said slowly. "If you love me, then you're not allowed to give up. I need you here, with me. You're Death, I'm life. You took care of people, I killed them. It's obvious that fate was a little confused about us. So what? This is a war - we kill people or they kill us. Don't let him get to you."  
  
"It's not him. It's them." Heero didn't have to ask who 'they' were.  
  
"They were being used for evil. There was nothing you could do. If you hadn't done it, they would have killed you. Or one of us - we would have had no way to know that they weren't on our side."  
  
"Quatre wouldn't have been able to do it," Duo said quietly.  
  
Heero snorted. "And look what it's doing to him," he retorted. "It's tearing him apart that he can't make the decisions he knows he should. Besides, that's his power, not necessarily him. He would have known what he should do, the question is whether his power would have allowed it. But it had to be done."  
  
"Heero..." Duo abruptly broke off, sinking down on the bed and holding his head in his hands. Heero decided that the fact that Duo hadn't gone back into the corner was a good sign.  
  
He waited a few minutes, then stood up and joined Duo on the bed, silently linking their fingers and pulling Duo in for another hug. "You do know that I love you, right?" he asked with a slight frown, afraid that Duo might have gotten that impression because he hadn't said it earlier.  
  
Duo's only response was to sigh and sink deeper into the embrace. After a few more minutes he said, "You know Heero? You're absolutely impossible to reason with. I'm not sure if that's a compliment or not."  
  
Heero snorted.  
  
"What are we going to do now?"  
  
"There shouldn't be an attack for a few hours. You should get some rest."  
  
"What about you?"  
  
"I need to talk to Quatre for a few minutes first."  
  
Duo's arms tightened around Heero's waist. "Don't leave me yet, please?" he pleaded. "I... I just need you here. Just for a little while."  
  
"I'm going to kill Zechs," Heero muttered under his breath, and was rewarded with a low chuckle from Duo.  
  
"You say the nicest things, Hee-chan," Duo murmured. "You are impossible, though."  
  
Heero grunted, just to make sure Duo knew he wasn't ignoring him.   
  
A few more minutes passed, then Duo straightened up slightly, turning in Heero's arms to face him. His bangs still shading his eyes, he murmured, "Yup, definitely impossible. But you might be manageable yet." He tossed his bangs out of his eyes, and then leaned in to kiss Heero, who found himself lost in their inky depths.  
  
  
-----------------------------------  
  
  
A few hours later, Heero emerged from his rooms and went in search of Quatre. He found him and the other two studying a diagram of the enemy camp.   
  
"Is he..." Quatre trailed off worriedly.   
  
"He's sleeping," Heero informed them. "I'm going to kill Zechs and Treize, and the rest of them too."  
  
Quatre nodded mildly in response to his announced intentions of homicide. "They're attacking us individually now, trying to strike at where they think we're weakest," he said simply.  
  
"What are we going to do?"   
  
Quatre swallowed. "We can't... waste resources by trying to protect the villages. But we have to stop this. So far our efforts have had little to no effect. We've got to drive them out. We've got to attack."  
  
  
  
  
1. Believe it or not, I actually have a braid that's over three feet long, and I've done that several times. This is actually something that happens when you have long hair long enough - you start to react automatically to protect your nose and face from getting beat up.  
  
  
Well, here's the next section. That last section with Duo was a little rough, but I think I'm pleased with the way it turned out. That's the way I picture arguing with Heero, an odd combination of tactical arguments combined with bizarre leaps of logic.   
Sorry this one took so long, but RL has been... interesting. I actually had a lot more time to write after I got a concussion, because I couldn't go to work or do anything, although that's not a preferable way of getting out of work. I've tried it, and it's not too much fun. Anyway, the good news is that I don't think that my writing style changes much when I'm writing with a head injury.   
I think that I'm almost done - probably one more section left (maybe two if it gets too long) and then a couple of epilogs. I know where I'm going, so it shouldn't take too long (knocks on wood).   
Marika 7/24/01  
  
  
  
  
  



	18. Part 17

"You know this is insane, don't you?" Duo asked as Heero walked over to the bed and examined it's contents with a critical eye. He'd raided the armory earlier, and now had a very large collection of knives and short-bladed swords lying out on the bed. His own personal collection was on the chair, but he'd wanted to supplement it tonight with some extras. "This is completely suicidal. You're going to get yourself killed."  
  
Once Quatre had announced that they were going to strike, there remained the little question of 'how'. An outright strike seemed like a very bad idea, given the number of mages that the enemy currently possessed. They needed to eliminate some of them before they could think about attacking in force.  
  
Heero had suggested that as long as they had a very well-trained and capable assassin at their disposal, they might as well use those skills. That had instantly touched off an argument, because Duo was heavily opposed to any plan that would almost certainly get Heero killed. Quatre had finally gotten them calmed down enough to suggest that they try to find a way that it wouldn't be virtual suicide, and then work from there.  
  
It had taken over a week, but they'd managed to pull everything together. Wufei knew of a spell that would pierce the protective shield over the enemy camp, and more importantly, it would do it without the enemy ever finding out. Quatre was going to shield him while he was in the camp so that no one sensed his presence. Heero could do a lot of damage in a couple of hours, and then (hopefully) slip out undetected. If not, he was prepared to fight his way out.  
  
He was currently dressed entirely in black, and there was a mask lying on the bed as well. As he looked carefully over the knives and selected the best of the lot, quickly concealing them on his body, Duo continued to talk.   
  
"Actually, I'm a fine one to be talking," Duo muttered to himself. Heero cast a curious look in his direction, but continued his preparations. "This is entirely insane. We're going to get ourselves killed."  
  
*That* got his attention, and Heero abruptly swung around. "What?"  
  
"Good. I was wondering if you were even listening to me," Duo remarked as he stepped up to the bed, eyeing the knives himself. He picked up a very short throwing knife and examined the edge thoughtfully before lifting it up and down a few times, testing the weight.  
  
"What?" Heero repeated.  
  
"I'm coming with you," Duo told him calmly, slipping the knife back into it's sheath and setting it aside. "Quatre's going to shield you, Trowa will shield me."   
  
"No."  
  
A dagger suddenly appeared, quivering slightly where it was stuck in the wood of the doorframe just past Heero's head. He hadn't even seen the movement, and Duo had another knife ready. "What was that?" Duo asked mildly, testing the edge with a finger and then healing the cut on his thumb that testing produced. "Are you the only one around here that's allowed to risk his neck in suicidal ventures?"   
  
Heero glared at him, unable to come up with a suitable argument against Duo coming along with him. While it was true that Duo did not have the official training that he had, he was talented. Heero didn't know exactly how Duo had come to be so good with knives, or the various other instruments he'd seen him use against the enemy, and wasn't sure he wanted to know, either. Duo was also better than anyone else in their group at sneaking around, and that could be a major advantage here. No, the reason he had now for not wanting Duo along was purely emotional, and that was unacceptable.  
  
So he settled for glaring at Duo as he selected a number of small knives and strapped two of them into customized sheaths on his wrists, then hid the rest of them in various places on her person. He was, as usual, dressed entirely in black, so that shouldn't be a problem. "You have to do something about your face," he pointed out. Duo's skin, even after all these months spent battling in the desert, was still very fair, and it would show in the slightest bit of moonlight. And there was no way that a mask would work, not with that mass of hair.  
  
"I'll rub some soot on it before we leave," Duo said, taking out a long object wrapped in black cloth and with some ropes attached to it. As Heero watched, Duo slung it over his back and fixed it there with a rope over one shoulder, across his chest, and to his opposite hip, much like a quiver of arrows would be.   
  
"What's that?"  
  
"It's a weapon. Come on, Quatre wants to talk to us before we go." Duo turned to leave, but Heero caught his arm.  
  
  
"You don't have to do this."  
  
Duo smiled at him, running a hand through his hair. "Actually, I do, but that's beside the point. The point is that I want to do this. I'm just a little irritated with them right now, and I want to kill some Ozzies. It's about time they met Shinigami."  
  
Heero looked at him very carefully at this last statement. He'd heard Duo refer to himself by his 'secret name' a number of times, but it was only in the last few days that those referrals hadn't been accompanied by a large amount of anger and self-loathing. He was glad that was gone, but he didn't completely trust that Duo was 'OK', no matter what he said. He'd dismissed what Zechs had done pretty easily - well, after that first initial 'discussion' they'd had - and that made Heero suspicious.   
  
Duo noticed his stare, and his grin widened. "Seriously, Heero, I want to do this. And if you think I'm letting you sneak into the enemy camp without me there to back you up..." he let the sentence trail off, then moved swiftly through the door. Heero followed him.  
  
They found Quatre in a small chamber that looked like it had been used as a study. He was standing in front of a small wooden chest, and even in the dim torchlight it was obvious that his face was pale. "Are you ready?" he asked after a few seconds.  
  
"Whenever you guys are, we're set," Duo said promptly, and Quatre nodded, looking down at the chest in front of him. "What'd ya want to see us for?"  
  
"I have something to give to you," Quatre said, opening the chest, and withdrawing something from within. Then he very carefully closed the chest, locked it, and then hid it in a niche in the wall that was covered by a painting. "Here," he said, holding out two small vials, each partially filled with a brownish powder.   
  
"What's this?" Duo asked, taking one and examining it.   
  
"Poison," Quatre replied with a slight sigh. "Back when I was my father's heir, he gave me some... instruction... about these matters. He hated the necessity, but he wasn't stupid - we have to know what these are, how they are used, how to defend against them..." he shook his head slightly. "Sorry. If you get a chance, pour one of those into any of the cooking pots they use, preferably a clean, empty one, although if you can't find one of those, dump it into one with food in it."  
  
"What'll it do?" Duo asked as he tucked the vial away.  
  
"If you get it into a clean pot, it will coat the surface and affect the next several batches of food cooked in that pot, even if it's washed. If you get it in food, it will only affect the one batch."  
  
"And what affect would that be?" Duo asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
Quatre took a deep breath and let it out. "It will kill anyone who eats more than a mouthful out of the food."  
  
Duo let out a low whistle. "Your dad didn't mess around," he remarked admiringly.   
  
"No, he didn't. Are you two ready?"  
  
"Just gotta get some dirt for my face and I'll be set," Duo offered. Quatre looked confused, but didn't choose to comment.  
  
----------------------------------------------------  
  
Wufei settled himself cross-legged on the floor, on top of a large cushion, trying to get as comfortable as possible. They were probably going to be in position for several hours, at least, and he did not want his physical body to cause any distraction. Nearby, Quatre was laying on a bed, with Trowa lying beside him. Both held large crystals in their hands - they would use those crystals to pull in and channel Heero and Duo's powers, so that they wouldn't be detected while in the enemy camp.  
  
Sally Po stood in the doorway, a faintly worried expression on her face. Behind her he could clearly see the huge body of the Manguanac leader, who looked just as concerned as he watched Quatre's preparations.  
  
"Keep an eye on the desert," Quatre was instructing them. "Duo and Heero may need some cover coming back, and we may be otherwise occupied."  
  
"We'll take care of it, Master Quatre," Rashid pledged, glancing at Sally, who didn't appear to notice.  
  
Wufei was doing his best to ignore her presence, but he was aware, not only of her eyes on him, but of Quatre and Trowa's. Finally he gave into the inevitable with a sigh and turned to look at Sally. His eyes met hers, and he felt his heart lurch. This is entirely ridiculous, he told himself, but he didn't seem to be listening. He pressed his lips together and swallowed. "Well?" he asked sharply, inwardly wincing at the way it sounded.  
  
There was little expression on her face, but she more than made up for that with the concern in her eyes as she spoke. "Please be careful, Wufei."  
  
His heart lurched again when she spoke his name, and in his irritation with himself, he responded without thinking. "Woman! I know..." he abruptly cut himself off when he saw the hurt in her eyes. "Sally," he immediately corrected himself, then realized that there was absolutely no way to gracefully get out of this. He swallowed again, then said stiffly, "We will be careful."  
  
The faintest traces of a smile could be seen at the corners of her mouth now, even though her eyes remained concerned. She gave them all a quick nod and then left the room, closing the heavy door behind her.  
  
Wufei glanced at the other two. Quatre was staring at him with wide eyes, hints of a smug, pleased smile playing around the corners of his mouth. Trowa was just staring at him, but Wufei detected hints of surprise in his features. He glared at both of them, thanking whoever was listening that Duo hadn't been present to witness that incident. He'd never have heard the end of that.  
  
"Wufei..." Quatre said slowly, his smile broadening.  
  
"What?" Wufei snapped, his glare intensifying.  
  
"I'm glad for you," Quatre told him simply, before lying back down again. Trowa hadn't sat up, but his expression was somewhat thoughtful as he regarded Wufei for a minute before relaxing and closing his eyes.  
  
:Are you ready?: Quatre asked him.  
  
:Just a moment,: he replied, taking several deep breaths to bring himself back to the level of calm and concentration that would be necessary to successfully complete this spell. He had spent several days searching through his predecessor's memories to find a spell that might possibly accomplish what they needed it to - namely, to break a hole in the shield that protected the enemy camp, a hole large enough for a person to sneak through but one that wouldn't alert them that anything was wrong.  
  
The spell he had finally found would serve all of those purposes, the major problem being that the spell in question required vast amounts of power from the caster, and more power the longer the hole was to be kept open. Their predecessors had never thought to use their powers this way, never mounted attacks on the invaders, choosing to respond entirely defensively. Their current plan was a major departure from the strategy used in the last war, and the only one of it's kind so far.  
  
In a few seconds Wufei had reached the necessary frame of mind and said, :I am ready.:   
  
:I've told them,: Quatre said after a few seconds. :Go whenever you want.:   
  
Wufei took one last look at his companions before sinking even further into the light trance he'd put himself in, and letting the elements of the spell flow across the top of his mind.  
  
--------------------------------------------  
  
Duo had known that Heero had to be one of the best assassins out there - he knew enough about his love to know that there was no possible way he would accept anything less from himself, but he'd never actually seen Heero in action before. Now he saw him doing what he'd been trained to do practically since his birth, and Duo was impressed. Very impressed.  
  
Duo had learned to be a killer as a way of life, a method of survival, but he'd never had any official training. Anything that gave him an advantage he kept, anything that put him at a disadvantage he never used again. So much of what he did with his magic was instinctual anyway, that he never really missed the lack of formal training - until now. Now, seeing a person who was actually trained for this stuff... every motion Heero made was pure efficiency - designed to get the maximum out of every strike.  
  
They'd gotten through the shield without any problems - there was no indication that the Ozzies even knew their shield had been attacked, much less that it had been breached and they now had two of the enemy running around camp. Too bad for them.  
  
They worked their way through several tents that housed the Ozzies. The possessed men hadn't moved at all in their sleep, so the lack of movement now that they were dead probably wouldn't cause a fuss until morning. He supposed that there were a few advantages to having an enemy army that was being controlled by beings from another world - in a normal army, there would have been a lot more late-night activity, which could have been problematic. Treize - the head demon guy - hadn't even bothered to post guards, relying on the shields to protect the camp. Again, too bad for them.  
  
He could never say later what it was that caused him to freeze in place, although he was quite grateful for it when, a second later, an older man with glowing white eyes walked past without even glancing in his direction. Duo found himself holding his breath and let it out slowly as the man walked into a small tent. His eyes automatically went to Heero's - Heero had frozen at exactly the same instant he had, he might have heard the mage walking up, or maybe he'd seen Duo freeze, or maybe he'd had the same hunch that Duo had. Probably not that last one, he didn't believe in trusting something so nebulous as his gut, even if his instincts were probably better than most humans.  
  
Now Duo saw Heero's eyes flicker to the small one-man tent, and with a sinking feeling in *his* gut, he knew what Heero wanted to do. It was a good thing that they'd spent so much time together and been working as a team for so long - they'd gotten to the point where the mental communication was unnecessary for coordinating their actions. Now that they were in the enemy camp, they couldn't risk using even the little bit of power used for mental communication, they had to remain completely silent. It was funny, after all the time they'd spent learning to control their powers, now they were stuck not being able to use them at all.  
  
He felt Heero's eyes still on him and mentally cursed himself for his carelessness. Now was not the time to let his mind wander - he'd need all of his wits right here to have a chance at getting out of this alive. And he had the strong suspicion that if he messed up, Heero would either find some way to resurrect him or to follow him so that he could scold him for his carelessness.  
  
Duo looked at the tent himself, carefully weighing the options. No one had said it outright, but the people they were really here to kill were the mages, and as many of them as possible. The regular soldiers they could kill by the score in normal battles, but the mages almost never risked themselves - they were the primary target.  
  
The problem was that they were also much more dangerous than the poor mind-controlled humans. They had magic, and only one demon apiece controlling them. They didn't know what it would do to the demon on the other side to have the mage they were controlling killed. It might kill the demon, or just kick him out of this world. If the demon was somehow in good enough condition to warn the others of it's kind about what had happened, they were about to be in a lot of trouble.   
  
Still, now was as good a time as any to find out if this was going to work - they were still pretty close to the edge of the camp, and they'd killed most of the soldiers between it and their current position. And Duo did want to kill some of the mages. He gave Heero a quick nod, controlling his face so that his normal grin didn't give him away - white teeth would stand out pretty well in the darkness.   
  
He jerked his head towards the back of the tent, and saw Heero's slight nod of agreement. Only a fool would enter a dark tent through the flap facing the main tent - the light from the fires alone would be sure to wake the occupant, and then that same light would outline your figure in the doorway. No, it was a much better idea to slip around back. If they could, they'd pull up one of the stakes in the ground and slip under one edge of the tent, if that wasn't an option, they could always slit a hole in the back.  
  
Duo began to creep towards the back of the tent.  
  
------------------------------------------  
  
Killing the mage was relatively easy, and no alarm was raised, so they continued on their bloody work. It was Heero who finally called a halt to the slaughter, right after he'd managed to dump the poison he carried into a just-cleaned pot the size of a small tub. But Duo was the one who really made good use of the poison, though - he managed to deposit his bottle into a much smaller pot of soup that was obviously headed for the officer's quarters. In this army, officers meant mages.  
  
Heero decided to withdraw immediately after that - they'd killed close to a dozen mages, one at a time, but Duo's poison had a better chance at killing many of them than they did, and he didn't want anything to interrupt their meal, especially not word of their work that night. Besides, dawn was nearing, and he wanted both of them very clear of the camp before it became light enough to see.  
  
He'd kept a careful eye on Duo the entire time, but seen nothing alarming. Duo wasn't happy with what they'd done, but he wasn't going to let it stop him. That was normal. Heero admitted, to himself, that he was more than a little relieved by that, although he still wasn't sure if he should trust this.  
  
They slipped back around to where Wufei had created the hole in the shield and were stepped through it. Then it was all open ground to the shielded fortress, although they were careful to continue moving silently, and to keep an eye out for any pursuers.   
  
Rashid and Sally met them at the door, and immediately took them up to the room where Quatre, Trowa, and Wufei still remained in trances. That was one of the major dangers to them - they were all almost completely immersed in trances, either working on containing vast amounts of power (Trowa and Quatre) or working on spells of such intricacy that a moment's distraction could be disastrous (Wufei). In short, they needed to have the two of them come back in order to be roused. Wufei probably would have come out of it on his own, eventually, and he might have been able to help the others, but it would have been difficult, to say the least.  
  
Heero immediately walked over to the bed and lay a hand on the crystal in Quatre's hands. Immediately he felt the power that Quatre had been holding racing through his body, and without him willing it, his wings appeared behind him. His lips twitched downward in a frown as he glanced back at the white feathers behind him, and his irritation increased as he noticed that although Duo had recovered his power with the same surge, *his* wings hadn't popped out.  
  
Quatre stirred quietly and then opened his eyes. Heero pointedly ignored the fact that the first thing he did was grope blindly for Trowa's hand, even as he was still struggling to bring himself back to full consciousness. After a few seconds, however, he woke up completely and sat up. He looked around the room, taking in Heero and Duo's condition - tired, but whole; Trowa's condition - still waking up; and Wufei's condition - still in a deep trance; and came to a quick decision. He rolled off the bed and quickly made his way over to Wufei, laying a hand on his shoulder. Heero felt the slightest surge of energy, then Wufei blinked his eyes once and stood up with no indication of any disorientation.  
  
"How did it go?" Quatre asked, not bothering to offer a hand to Wufei. They knew from previous experience that he wouldn't accept it, anyway.  
  
"Mission completed," Heero responded automatically, before he could stop himself. He'd been doing his best to divorce himself from the mannerisms that Odin had trained into him, but he slipped sometimes.  
  
"I need numbers," Quatre said quietly, half-closing his eyes as he returned to the bed, twining his fingers around Trowa's.   
  
Heero paused a moment to stare at Quatre before beginning the calculations in his head. He'd never have believe that Quatre could be capable of this type of thinking when he'd first met him - even at the beginning of the war he hadn't seemed so cold-blooded. Of course, it would be a lot more convincing if he didn't look half-sick when he was having these discussions.  
  
They'd cut their way through seven tents, each with between fifty and seventy-five soldiers in them, and probably killed a dozen more or two as they moved through the camp, in order to cover their tracks. "We killed about five hundred soldiers," he reported, "and ten of their mages."  
  
Quatre's eyes widened slightly when he heard the numbers. The five hundred soldiers were incidental - they killed that many every battle or two - but the ten mages, that was a fairly large fraction of all of the mages at Treize's disposal, and much better than they'd done in all the months of fighting.   
  
"But Heero didn't even tell you the good news, yet," Duo cut in. He was still wearing the soot he'd smeared on his face for the night raid, so his teeth appeared startlingly white in his face as he flashed them a grin. "We had some fun with that poison. He dumped his in a pot that they use for serving gruel to the regular soldiers, poor saps."  
  
Quatre paled slightly and swallowed, but nodded approvingly. "How about you?"  
  
"I managed to sneak up and dump it in a pot of soup - good soup - headed for the mages. If it's half as deadly as you said, we ought to have a bunch less of them in a couple of hours."   
  
Quatre nodded again. He still looked like he was going to throw up, but that didn't stop him from saying, "That's good, very good." He half-closed his eyes again, then said, "You'd better get some rest while you can."  
  
"Good, because I could sleep for a week... while we can?" Duo suddenly cut himself off, eyeing Quatre suspiciously. "What do you mean, while we can?"  
  
"They'll attack in a couple of hours, probably as soon as they've discovered the dead bodies," Quatre stated matter-of-factly. "And if for some reason they don't, they will the second mages start dropping from the poison."  
  
"Great," Duo grimaced. "OK, Quatre... You know that I trust you, right? But if you don't mind telling me, where did this come from?"  
  
Quatre blinked in surprise, apparently he still hadn't figured out that he tended to think several steps ahead of the rest of them (with the possible exception of Wufei) in these situations. "They have to," he responded, then elaborated. "Their only advantage is their numbers. They have many times the number of soldiers, and they have a large numbers advantage with mages, as well. They need it. You know how much more powerful we are then all but a few of them. Treize can probably stand up to us on his own, and Zechs, but they're the only ones. And they can stand up to us one on one, there are five of us. The only reason that they can threaten us at all, hold up shields that can withstand our attacks, maintain their hold over the soldiers... the only reason they can do any of that is because of their numbers. There were... how many, maybe fifty mages among them? We've killed a fifth of their forces, and we may kill even more as the sun comes up. Even if we don't kill any more of them, they can't keep up everything they've been doing without more mages, and we've got most of them protected here. They can't even send any of their people through - you saw the only type that can survive the journey, they're little more than animals. This will be their last chance," he said with careful emphasis.  
  
"So that's a good thing, right?" Duo asked.  
  
Quatre visibly winced. "Yes and no. If we manage to survive this battle, we have a very good shot at winning, really winning, driving them back permanently. But they'll throw everything they have at us tomorrow, including the magic attacks that they've held back on because they're so draining. It will be... difficult." He swallowed.  
  
Heero thought that was massive understatement if he'd ever heard it, but decided that the others probably knew that too, so he didn't comment, except to grunt affirmatively.  
  
"We may want to consider leaving the troops behind tomorrow," Wufei mused.  
  
"What?" Quatre turned his head to stare at Wufei.  
  
"If they have lost people... will lose more, it may be worth our while to preserve all of our energy for ourselves. If this is their last attack, they will use magic, not steel, and we will not be able to defend your men from that sort of concentrated attack," Wufei told him. "We can defend ourselves, and fight back."  
  
Quatre's eyes went distant for a second, then he nodded his head. "You're right. I wouldn't have thought of that," he said self-deprecatingly. "I'll tell them." He sighed. "They're not going to be happy," he murmured to himself.  
  
"They'll be alive," Wufei pointed out. "Don't spend too long arguing with them, you need your rest. They will obey you, or we'll put them to sleep for the duration of that battle."  
  
And with that diplomatic comment, he spun and stalked out of the small room, headed for his own quarters.   
  
"I don't know if I'd mention that threat to them, but he's right," Duo said ruefully, then yawned. "And I'm going to go sleep for as long as I can. Wake me if anyone dies," he remarked cheerfully, then followed Wufei out the door. Heero paused long enough to give the rest of them a curt nod, then followed Duo. He wanted Duo next to him for the next few hours, even if they weren't awake.  
  
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The promised attack came that morning, just a few hours short of noon, which argued that Treize had waited until his mages started dropping from the poison Duo had introduced to their food. They hadn't managed to get Treize, unfortunately, but the loss of his mages apparently panicked the invaders, who immediately launched a mostly-suicidal attack against the shields with the common soldiers.   
  
It was during that initial attack that Quatre managed to convince his men not to follow them out onto the field. Well, maybe 'convince' wasn't exactly the right word for what happened. Mostly Quatre stood quietly as the Manguanacs surrounded him and protested that he couldn't go out to fight without them there to protect him, as if he was totally incapable of taking care of himself. Trowa watched in amusement as his love calmly listened to all the accusations, then patiently explained how it would be more dangerous for him if they were out in the field with him, that he might be distracted at a critical moment if they were attacked magically in the middle of the battle. Then, with that earnest, adorable, irresistible look on his face (and Trowa knew now that Quatre was aware of exactly how manipulative he was), he pleaded with them to stay behind so that he could devote all of his attention to the coming battle. With a plea like that, they didn't have a chance.   
  
All of that was made even more entertaining by the fact that Trowa was also listening to Quatre conducting an entirely different conversation with the others at the same time, discussing possible attacks Treize would use, and going over every counter-spell they collectively knew. Trowa saw Rashid and Sally (both of whom absented themselves from the argument) watching Quatre very carefully, but other than that there was no sign that anyone suspected what he was doing.  
  
The result was a foregone conclusion, anyway. Despite what Wufei had said, none of them expected that Quatre wouldn't be able to convince his men to do what he wanted, especially if he believed it was really in their own self-interest.   
  
They were sitting quietly while the troops threw themselves at the shield in droves, waiting for the real attack to come.   
  
Suddenly the entire fortress shook, right down to the stones of it's foundation. If it hadn't been made to withstand both attacks and sandstorms, they probably would have been sitting in a pile of rubble. As it was, Quatre lost his footing, and only Trowa's lightening-fast reflexes saved him from a fall. Quatre stood up, looked around at the various furnishings that had been disturbed, and said, "I think we'd better get out there."  
  
He stood up, his sword already in hand. He looked at Trowa. :Are you ready?: he asked privately.  
  
Trowa allowed a hint of a smile to appear on his face, just enough so that Quatre would see it. Quatre smiled briefly in return, then closed his eyes for a fraction of a second, obviously preparing himself for what was coming. Then he opened them, and though he searched, Trowa could find no hint of fear in those clear blue eyes. There was an almost unearthly calm there, and as he looked around, Trowa saw that that same calm seemed to have enveloped the others.   
  
Himself included, he realized after a few seconds. It was just that it was so close to his normal behavior that he hadn't noticed it until now.   
  
I wonder what's going on? he thought, and then realized that even that thought was oddly abstracted and distant. He was used to feeling this way, but this was taking it to extremes. :Quatre?: he asked, not even bothering to phrase a question. Quatre would have the best shot at all of them at understanding what was going on, and he would automatically pull the information from his mind.  
  
It had occurred to him, on occasion, that most people would be very offended by having someone dip into their thoughts at any moment, that maybe he should be offended, too, but he didn't mind. Not if it was Quatre. He never felt the least bit as if Quatre was violating his privacy, in fact, the thought hadn't even occurred to him until Duo had made some comment to that effect. He thought that it was because Quatre truly didn't mean anything, it was just the way his mind worked. He never pried, or tried to figure out other people's secretes, he just pulled bits of information from people's minds so that he could understand them better. As far as Trowa was concerned, there was nothing invasive about it, it was just the same as Quatre continually asking for clarifications about what people said. This way just cut out a lot of unnecessary talking.  
  
:It's the world,: Quatre said after a moment, his voice tinged with wonder. Trowa could tell from the 'tone' of his voice that he was including all of them in the conversation.  
  
:What is, Quatre?: Duo asked. His normally-manic voice was also calm, although he didn't seem to have noticed it yet.  
  
:Look at us. We're not the least bit nervous.:   
  
Trowa saw Duo glance around at the rest of them, then his eyes widened slightly. :Well, what do you know, you're right.: Duo was silent for a minute, his eyes narrowed in concentration, then he said, :I can't even get pissed off right now about this. What's going on?:  
  
:It's the world itself. It's kind of... well, not taking us over, but just... influencing us, making sure we're ready. We've got all the power it can give us, now it's up to us.: Quatre shrugged slightly. :It's our destiny.:  
  
Trowa could almost see Duo considering that, trying to find something wrong with it. He finally gave up and shrugged. :I guess she's just trying to protect her investment,: he said.   
  
Another shudder ran through the stone walls. This time Quatre remained standing on his own. He threw a quick glance around the room, then smiled. "It's time."  
  
Heero grunted agreement, Duo grinned in response, and Trowa found himself nodding in unison with Wufei.   
  
Wufei was the first out the door, followed closely by Duo and Heero. Trowa hesitated a moment longer, turning to look at Quatre. "Quatre? I... I never said it. I know that you know, but... I love you."  
  
Quatre's eyes lit up, and despite the worry etched in every line of his face, he smiled brilliantly, and gave Trowa a quick hug. "I did know, but thank you for telling me. Are you ready now?"   
  
Trowa nodded. He had every intention of surviving the next battle, but he'd seen too much fighting to be able to deny the possibility that something might happen, and he didn't want to go into this battle without saying it at least once.   
  
They headed out after the others, to the battle that waited outside.  
  
  
  
  
  
Well, that took longer than I thought it would, and I didn't get nearly as far as I wanted to, but it's long enough. The next chapter will have the big battle. It may be a bit delayed (even more so than usual - grimace) because I'm moving back to school. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this one!  
Marika 8/16/01  



	19. Part 18

This was unlike any fighting that any of them had ever done, probably because no one had ever had to fight this way before. In the distant past, when there had been really powerful mages with lands and titles of their own (mostly because no one dared to take the belongings of someone who could kill with a glance), all of the fighting between the mages had been solely with magic. All fighting with others involved supporting troops, combined with devastating magical attacks directed at the enemy troops, never with the mages using magic to support their own troops, or with them doing any fighting themselves.   
  
Here was a situation that no one could have ever anticipated or prepared for - one which the five of them were better able to deal with than maybe anyone else could be. All of them had spent much of their lives running and hiding, their adaptability was one reason that they'd survived as long as they had, and now that ability served them well.   
  
This was an entirely new type of fighting, where you dodged a couple of swords, stabbed someone, ducked behind a falling body, and saw a slight flaw in the shield that protected the soldiers from magic attack. Then you used a fast magic attack, and whatever soldiers were supposed to be protected behind that shield would immediately drop dead. Sometimes that bought you a couple seconds of rest, if you were surrounded by the soldiers whose protection had failed. More often, though, the soldiers were mixed together, and they just dropped wherever they were, sprinkled throughout the chaos, and it was immediately back to fighting, dodging, and slashing at those around you.   
  
Duo lost count of the number of times that he automatically healed minor wounds he received in the course of the fighting, several of which were serious enough that they might have disabled a normal human for the duration of the battle. But for the first time, he felt like they were really making progress. More than once he'd seen an enemy mage, thick in the midst of the battle, stumble and fall, and not get up, proof that the poison Quatre had provided was working.   
  
Even more encouraging was the fact that as soon as those mages died, all of the people that they were controlling - the normal soldiers - would immediately drop to the ground, unconscious, like puppets whose strings had been cut. Each mage that died, either by their hands or because of the poison, significantly decreased the number of soldiers that they had to fight. Besides, even though they were obviously completely outnumbered, there were a limit to the number of soldiers that could possibly attack any of them at one time, so that helped.  
  
The real danger came from the mages that hid themselves among the common soldiers, the ones who could strike at them using magic. The only outward sign visible that they were anything different than the regular human soldiers would be the glowing yellow eyes - it was very easy to hide the large eyes, slender figure, and pointed ears that marked a mage, as Quatre had obviously proven. So the only warning you had was a brief flash of those glowing eyes, which hopefully gave enough time to throw up your shields before the attack came. Then you had to hunt down and kill the mage that had attacked you, generally a fairly difficult task in a battlefield. And there were a good many more minor mages among Treize's people then they'd originally thought, enough to make a major impact on the fighting.  
  
Duo had just found a serious flaw in someone's shields, and had managed to kill, not only the fighters under the shield, but the mage who was supposed to be holding the shield in the first place. That was a stupid way to hold a shield, anyway, any idiot knew that linking the shield to your personal energy supply directly resulted in death when the shield was breached.  
  
On the other hand, the mage in question might not have had a choice. Most mages were weaker than they were - this was being dealt with by the demons funneling their power through the human mages, but if the mage in question was weak enough, then it became very difficult for the demons to give them enough power. Kind of like trying to let a waterfall run through a hole the size of his fist, it didn't matter how much power there was on the demon side, it just couldn't get through to their world. So the only way that they could get enough power to the shields to have them possibly stand up to their attack would be by linking them directly to their life force. And, of course, the demons didn't care if the process ended up being deadly to the humans, who didn't have a choice in the matter.  
  
Duo let his mind drift slightly, so that he would know what was going on with the rest of them without letting himself get killed. He would have known immediately if something serious happened to them, but that didn't mean that he knew exactly what was going on or where they all were.  
  
Quatre had his back to the wall of the fort on the far side of the immense structure. He was doing less damage than the rest of them, but his position was much more protected, as well. He seemed to be holding his own. Trowa was definitely holding his own, standing amidst a pile of bodies with more soldiers crowded around him. His style switched from time to time, depending on who was in control of his body, sometimes fighting with cold determination, other times with violent ferocity that reminded Duo of the lions that Trowa had hung out with in the circus. As far as Duo could tell, Trowa hadn't noticed the violent change, and if he hadn't, Duo wasn't about to tell him. If it was him, he wouldn't wanted to have known.  
  
Wufei was, as usual, right in the thick of it, his sword slashing through the soldiers who were trying to get at him. He paused for a fraction of a second, and with an ease that Duo envied, he sliced with his magic at the shield over the soldiers on his left, killing them, and then switched back to the sword with barely a pause. He was doing just fine.  
  
Heero was closest, and dealing with the soldiers around him in his usual efficient fashion, wasting no movements as he used all of the weapons at his disposal to kill those around him. He noticed Duo's attention, and sent a tendril of thought in his direction, just to make sure he was OK.  
  
:I'm fine, Heero,: Duo told him as he cut a soldier in half with his scythe. He might have overreacted a little bit on that one, he reflected as the momentum of the weapon carried it halfway through another soldier before he bothered to stop it. :How you doing?:  
  
:No injuries,: Heero reported, and Duo sighed. If they lived through this stupid battle, this was definitely something they were going to have to work on. It made him feel like an army sergeant when Heero reported to him like that.   
  
:Good, you have any idea how we're doing?: he asked.  
  
It wasn't Heero, but Quatre, who answered him. :Not too badly. We're doing some serious damage to them, and some of them are still dropping from the poison. They've started sending their minor mages into the field, the least effective ones. After we work our way through them, the only ones that they can send are the major mages: Milliardo, Treize, and the others.:  
  
Duo thought about the weak shield and the mage attached to it that he'd just killed. If what Quatre was saying was right, and that really was a sign that they were getting desperate for mages, then the heavy hitters should start showing up soon. Then it would get interesting.  
  
  
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Heero was in the midst of searching out another crack in the shield over the soldiers when he suddenly became aware of someone *powerful* standing nearby and broke off his search. Instead he scanned the fighting around him, not knowing what he was looking for, but knowing that he would recognize it when he saw it. After a few seconds, he had his answer.  
  
A very familiar figure with long blond hair and glowing eyes stood less than a dozen feet away. As if he wasn't recognizable enough on his own, the soldiers actually stopped attacking him, clearing a circle around the two of them. Heero kept his guard up, not trusting that one of the soldiers at the edge of the circle wouldn't take the opportunity to stab him in the back.   
  
"Zechs," he growled, feeling every muscle in his body tense in anticipation of battle. This was the one who'd hurt Duo, and he was going to pay.  
  
"So, you're the assassin," he drawled in a low voice, a smile openly visible on his face as he studied Heero. "This body's memories of you are quite strong, almost as strong as the other one." His smile widened. "I'm surprised he's still alive. I would have thought that he would have cracked five minutes after the battle ended. You should have seen the look on his face when he saw those little creatures. Truly pathetic."  
  
Heero's rage increased by a marked amount, but it didn't cause him to try to attack Zechs, or to lose control. Mistakes like that were for amateurs, he knew better. Instead, he studied his enemy for possible weaknesses.   
  
There was a very strong mage shield covering him from head to toe, and as far as Heero could tell, he didn't have responsibility for any of the soldiers or shields on the battlefield, meaning that he could devote his full energy and attention to killing his enemy. However, he was also not really the enemy, the true enemy was in another world, and just controlling Zechs' body. That had to be an advantage, if he could figure out how to use it against him.   
  
Suddenly, without changing expression at all, Zechs cast a mage-bolt at him. It moved as fast as a bolt of lightening, and it looked a lot like one, too, if the lightening bolt had been bright red instead of white. Heero grunted slightly as the bolt impacted against his shields, and the force of the blow forced him to take a step back before he dug his feet into the sand. Immediately he felt Duo's touch. :You all right? What happened?:  
  
:Fine,: he grunted, and unleashed a flurry of mage-bolts back at Zechs. For once, he didn't bother to aim too carefully, and as the dozens of bolts of energy struck the ground around Zechs, he killed a dozen or so soldiers. None of the bolts penetrated the shield that Zechs had erected around himself.   
  
Zechs raised one hand to the sky, and suddenly all of the soldiers around him scrambled backwards, obviously trying to get out of the way before they got caught up in whatever he was about to do. Since they were still being controlled by the demons, who had to know what Zechs' controller was doing, Heero took that as a bad sign, and reinforced his shields. Sure enough, seconds later, tiny flames began dancing in the air around his outstretched hand.   
  
That was the only warning Heero got before fireballs began materializing in Zechs' hand and flying towards him with no visible effort on Zechs' part. Heero didn't waste energy deflecting them with his shield, he dropped the shield slightly, and smashed the first fireball away from him with his bare hand. He got a great deal of satisfaction out of seeing naked shock on the other man's face as he caught the next fireball and threw it back at him.   
  
Apparently whatever was controlling Zechs was not a skilled enough mage to duplicate his feat, because he reinforced *his* shields as the fireball smashed into it, disintegrating on impact.   
  
Heero gave him a tight-lipped smile as he glanced over his shoulders, striking at the weak point in the shield over the soldiers who were trying to sneak up on him from behind. About half of them dropped, the rest he set into with his sword, all the while keeping one eye on Zechs, who tried to sneak a few lightening-strikes in on him but otherwise tried no trickery. As the last of that group of soldiers died, he once again raised a hand, pointing at the sky.   
  
Heero's eyes widened slightly as a black circle appeared in the air over him, one that rapidly grew in size until it was several feet across. Out of that hole suddenly leapt five of the demons, the brute killers that were the only one of the enemy that could survive the journey, mostly because they had no minds to speak of. Zechs smiled openly as he silently pointed at Heero.  
  
Heero had only seen such creatures once before, on the edge of the faery forest, but he'd seen into Duo's nightmares more than one night. Duo didn't cry in his sleep, no more than he did when he was awake, but it was easy to tell when he had bad dreams, if you knew what signs to look for. Besides being mindlinked, he knew his lover very well, probably even better than Duo suspected. Ever since Thanatos had shown him what really happened to the faeries, those images had joined a number of others in his nightmares, ones that he had on a fairly regular basis.   
  
These were the demons that had killed all of Wufei's family, too, and had chased him for days. Heero had seen some of what they'd done to Wufei, as well.  
  
Heero's eyes narrowed slightly, and his fists clenched involuntarily. Duo had nightmares about these creatures, and although he'd never asked, he bet that Wufei did too. Now he got to destroy them.   
  
  
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Trowa made sure to keep within range of sight with Quatre, although he was sure that the other mage would have protested that he didn't need protection. Well, just as Gael had told him before he even knew what he really was, they weren't allowed any illusions, and although he might have wished otherwise, while Quatre was quite competent as a fighter, he was also their weak point, and as such, should be protected. He knew that Quatre would probably be angry with him later, but that could be dealt with when they were out of danger. If they survived.  
  
For now, however, Quatre seemed to be holding his own, so Trowa was free to dedicate most of his concentration on the battle going on around him. He was aware, without really knowing how, that Heero had finally caught up to Zechs and was currently engaged in something that resembled an ancient mage-duel, almost complete excluding the use of any common soldiers, just between the two of them. Both Wufei and Duo were fine. So he studied the patterns in the magic around him, searching for weaknesses.  
  
He wasn't as good at this as Wufei or Duo or even Quatre, he was better off just stabbing with his power at what *felt* right than in trying to actually see the cracks in the shields. His power had always been more of an instinctive thing, anyway.  
  
He'd discovered something right off, the shields that the demons were holding over the common soldiers kept him from being able to work magic against them directly, but did nothing to stop him from influencing them indirectly, either by affecting himself or their surroundings. Now in the midst of the battle, he found a few seconds to gaze, not at the soldiers, but at the ground beneath their feet.   
  
A hint of a smile appeared on his face. As he'd suspected, there was a deep pocket of air far beneath their feet. He wasn't sure exactly what it was, if it had once been a building, or a cave, or some naturally-occurring phenomenon, but what mattered was that it was there, and there was nothing between it and the men but tons of sand and stone.   
  
Then there came another vicious attack and all he could do was defend himself and keep and eye on Quatre for several minutes. Then there was another brief respite as a number of soldiers nearby dropped to the ground as a controller somewhere died, and he took advantage of it. He reached deep into the ground, and caused a slight shift, concentrating on the soldiers in front of him. There was a low rumble in the ground as the sheer weight of the earth resisted movement, but he was persistent, and suddenly the ground beneath the soldiers feet turned slippery, then soft, like quicksand. Only these sinkholes were being maintained solely because he willed them to, and there was one underneath each of the soldiers. They dropped silently into the earth, with sand pouring in to cover them. He dropped them down a dozen feet, pushing the extra sand into the air pocket he'd found, then left them there.   
  
He came out of the half-trance he'd fallen into and found himself standing in the center of a fair-sized circle of unoccupied sand. Just outside the circle were a number of soldiers, eyeing him warily, and even more important, a wide-eyed mage.   
  
Trowa's eyes narrowed slightly as he saw the mage. There was still plenty of room to move sand down there. He concentrated on the mage...  
  
  
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Wufei kept his hands together on the hilt of the sword, holding it between him and the greatest concentration of the soldiers. He pointed the end of the sword at them, and a stream of fire shot out from the end, making a line on the ground. From that line sprouted a wall of fire, almost a foot thick at the bottom, and although it wasn't apparent to the eye, completely solid. Anything that tried to jump through or over it would be instantly caught and killed. He'd never told Duo that he knew this spell - he knew that Duo's family had been killed by such a spell. It was almost impossible not to, what with the way they still shared nightmares from time to time. The spell was one that he had inherited from his predecessor, and one of the few simpler ones that he hadn't taught the others, because he knew how Duo would react.  
  
He'd bought himself a few seconds of rest, and took the time to survey the battlefield with magic-sensitive eyes.   
  
Things were going well. He saw only a few bright concentrations of energy that represented the enemy mages. There were still a dozen or so of them back at the enemy camp, probably supporting those still in the field, but they were no immediate danger. He saw Heero fighting with one remarkably bright light... Zechs? It had to be. There were only two enemy mages with that kind of power, and the power felt sort of familiar. Since he'd spent more time with Zechs and was more familiar with his power, it made sense that that power was Zechs.   
  
Wufei turned slightly, and his eyes widened as he saw a brilliant flare of power coming towards him. He'd already identified the one in the distance as Zechs, so that could only mean that Treize had finally been forced to enter the fray. He felt a sharp stab of triumph, but quickly controlled it. Treize would finally be vulnerable, but he was also the most powerful mage that the other side had, and he would be the most dangerous.   
  
Wufei didn't think that any of the others had noticed Treize yet, and he was definitely closest, so he returned his full attention to the battlefield and began working his way over to the power source. It was easier than he'd expected, which immediately put him on guard. It had to be some sort of trap, that could be the only reason for the Oz soldiers to allow him so close to their commander without fighting harder.   
  
A moment after the thought had occurred to him, he realized how stupid it was. Of course it was a trap, that was Treize's only hope for victory. Most of his mages were dead, and the ranks of the common soldiers had been decimated. The only hope they had of winning was to kill one of the five before their power could truly be united against the demons.  
  
He wasn't the tactical genius that Quatre was, but he thought he had a pretty good idea as to why Treize had come after him. They all knew that Quatre was the weakest fighter among them, and because of that, they were all hyper-alert for any threat to him. The rest all had their various strengths and weaknesses, but of all of them, only Wufei was without a partner. Heero would know instantly if Duo had any difficulty, and the same was true in reverse. Trowa would also know if Quatre was in danger, and Quatre... well, of all of them, he was the most likely to notice if Wufei was in trouble, but it wasn't the same, nothing like the link that the others had.   
  
For a moment Sally's face flashed in his mind, but he resolutely pushed it away. He needed to concentrate now, if he was going to survive. And survival in this battle meant death for Treize, and victory for them. There was no halfway here, just as Quatre had said, either they'd have victory or they'd be dead. Wufei opened himself to the others slightly, so that they'd know what was going on.  
  
:You're in position to fight Treize?: Quatre asked shortly.  
  
Wufei sent him a feeling of affirmation, and felt Quatre's concentration.  
  
:Duo's the closest, and it'll take him some time to get to you. If you need any power, just call,: Quatre told him, and then he was alone again.  
  
But not really. As the soldiers gave up all pretense of fighting and opened an aisle for him to walk through, Wufei could still feel the others, still see their powers as they fought on all sides of the fort, and Quatre's last words were with him. If he needed their help, they'd find a way to be there, and their powers were always there for his use, so that he wouldn't be overwhelmed. Holding his sword at the ready, alert for any sign that the soldiers around him were about to attack, he walked through the aisle.  
  
Suddenly the aisle disappeared, and he found himself standing at the edge of a large circle of circles. In the center of the circle stood Treize.  
  
He looked different than Wufei remembered him, thinner, with slight circles under his glowing eyes. But he radiated power that hadn't been there before, and nothing could conceal from Wufei the fact that all of that power was tainted in a way he was readily familiar with, after fighting the demons for so long.  
  
The reminder of the demons and what they'd done to his Clan was enough to make him lower his stance slightly and reinforce his shields, waiting for whatever attack Treize used.   
  
He didn't have to wait for long - a second later a bolt of lightening jumped from the end of Treize's sword to his own, where he tamed and then absorbed the energy. He responded with a lightening-strike of his own, which met with the same result.   
  
For several minutes they exchanged mage-attacks, neither able to gain a clear advantage. Treize - the demon that was controlling Treize - became visibly frustrated, moreso with each failed attack, and finally he actually snarled at Wufei. Wufei was momentarily taken aback by seeing the cultured Treize Khushrenada snarling at him like some crazed animal, and then was suddenly struck by the fact that this was *not* Treize Khushrenada.  
  
The demon in control of his body abruptly gave up on purely magic attacks, and rushed at him, brandishing a long heavy sword. The attack caught Wufei by surprise, and he instinctively raised his shields to block the blow. That reaction saved Wufei from a potentially deadly mistake, because as the sword cut into the shield and nearly passed through it, he realized that Treize had somehow invested a great deal of power into the steel. More importantly, he'd managed to do it in a way that hid the power from Wufei's eyes, making the sword look completely normal. If he'd tried to block the blow with his sword, it would have been cut in half, and he probably would have followed.   
  
He quickly spelled his sword to match, and then dropped his shields to attack Treize. He might have been able to hold up his shields against Treize's attack for some time, but there was a great deal of power in the sword, and his shields would have collapsed eventually. Besides, just protecting himself would do nothing to help the others, and the shame... The demons were responsible for the slaughter of his entire Clan, and he finally had a chance to do something about it.   
  
Whatever was controlling Treize's body was a good fighter, or maybe the demons were accessing his skills, but Wufei was hard-put to keep up with him and was unable to make any real headway. Suddenly he caught a glimpse of something in the shield that protected Treize from magical attack, that had protected him flawlessly so far. It was gone so fast that Wufei wasn't sure if he'd seen anything at all. But a few seconds later it was back, a slight flaw in the shield right over Treize's heart.  
  
Wufei frowned slightly - what was going on? His eyes were drawn to Treize's, and he was astonished to see that the glow in them had dimmed slightly, and seemed to be flickering in and out. Could Treize be... was it possible to fight the possession? Wufei almost immediately dismissed that thought - his predecessor had never seen, never heard of such a thing, and the glow from Treize's eyes was steady again, causing him to question if he'd even seen anything. But there was still that flickering flaw in his shield, and Treize seemed distracted now, and was making a few sloppy mistakes. Wufei managed to get through his guard once or twice to strike at him. Although he never managed to hit the flaw, each time he struck the shield, the flaw became even brighter, as if it was trying to draw attention to itself.  
  
He was on the offensive, now, and it was Treize who was struggling to keep up. Wufei drove him back towards the unresponsive troops, trying to keep his attention on both the troops and on Treize, but it was difficult, and he was beginning to tire...  
  
Treize threw another lightening bolt at him. This time it caught him by surprise, and it almost got through the shield. He only prevented that by dropping the sword with one hand and raising that hand to block the bolt. Still the force of the impact drove him to his knees, badly out of position. Treize struck at him, and only his shield prevented Wufei from receiving a deep wound from the enhanced sword.   
  
Wufei struggled to get his sword up to meet the threat as Treize raised his sword above his head, poised to strike. Suddenly, with the sword at the top of it's arc, straight above his head, he froze, for a fraction of an instant, and the flaw in his shield flared like a miniature sun.  
  
He *is* fighting it. In that instant of hesitation Wufei recalled all of the reasons that he'd come to Oz in the first place, after he fled his homeland. He'd heard that the country had a great leader, a strong ruler, beloved by the people, just... the sort of man he hoped to be someday. And it was this man who somehow managed to do what no other had ever done, he fought the possession to gain control of his body, if only for a moment.   
  
And that was enough, in that one moment of weakness, Wufei thrust upwards with his sword, funneled all the power he could managed through the weapon, and struck the flaw in the shield precisely. His sword passed easily through it and then through Treize's body.  
  
Treize immediately stiffened and sagged against Wufei. He braced himself for the warm rush of blood over his hands, but none came. Instead, beams of light began to emerge from the wound around the sword, the sword that Wufei did not dare remove for fear that Treize would heal himself. Instead, he shielded himself and continued to funnel energy through the sword, as the amount of light coming out of Treize's body increased, finally forming a solid column of light that shot towards the sky, where it detonated, and a huge black circle appeared. Wufei imagined he could see a thousand glowing red eyes staring at them from the other side of the hole.  
  
As the light left his body, Treize had convulsed, once, and now lay still. When the light left him, Wufei felt a sudden warmth on his hands, and saw the expected blood now did flow. Wufei left the faintly glowing sword in his chest. He had to die, or else the demons could return to his body.   
  
Wufei's eyes traveled up to Treize's eyes, and noticed that they were pale blue again, and although filled with pain, there was no fear there. "I'm... sorry..." he managed to gasp out, then coughed, a froth of blood coming from his mouth.  
  
"Thank you," Wufei said simply, bowing his head slightly to acknowledge the man's bravery, and the help he had given despite what had happened.   
  
Treize's eyes fixed on him, a hint of a smile graced the corners of his mouth, and as he lay his head back down on the ground, he died.   
  
  
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Quatre felt the surge of energy a moment before every soldier around him stumbled, then stopped, each rubbing their heads in confusion. He'd already seen the massive portal overhead, and he knew what that meant. :Link with me!: he shouted at the top of his lungs.  
  
Instantly Trowa joined with him, quickly followed by Duo, Heero, and finally Wufei. The process took only a few seconds, making Quatre think that maybe all those painful hours of practice had been worth it, and then they were all joined.   
  
:Good job, Wu-man!: Duo exulted in their mind(s).   
  
For once Wufei didn't correct him, but merely grunted acknowledgement. Something was bothering him, and Quatre made a mental note to talk to him later, but now they had a job to do. :Everyone know what to do?: he asked, and felt their agreement. :Then lets do this!:  
  
Quatre began to form the basis of the spell that would permanently bar the demons from their world. Their predecessors had never managed to kill the leader of the demon side in their time, just drove the majority of the demons away from the planet and then threw up the shield that shielded the world from invasion, but they had not closed the portal between the worlds, the rip in space that allowed the demons to pass through. That was what they now sought to do.  
  
It took all five of them to perform this spell, which was why the demons had been trying to kill at least one of them for so long.  
  
As the spell continued, with the others picking up their pieces and building on what he had begun, he started to lose his sense of individuality, as he got caught up in the purpose for which they'd been born, the massive amount of power that they were conjuring up, and the determination of the others. He thought he felt the others joining him, but it was almost impossible to tell in the rush of power that consumed him, consumed all of them. He could practically feel it dancing along his skin, roaring in his ears, dazzling his eyes...  
  
Suddenly they reached the brink, the power was almost uncontainable, it was through their own discipline and determination that they'd held it so far, but it was about to get away from them, Quatre could feel, and he started to panic. If they lost control of what they'd built, now, they could destroy their world. It was getting too big, they were about to lose it...  
  
Then a voice, he was never sure which of them it was, if any, said in an incredibly loud voice, :NOW.:  
  
That was the trigger they'd all been waiting for, as one they all let the spell loose, and at once Quatre felt all of the energy rush out of him, and an exhaustion as deep as anything he'd ever felt before hit him, and he dropped out of the link as the others did, his physical form slumping to the ground. He felt the hot sand on the back of his neck as he stared upwards at the huge circle in the sky, the edges of which began to waver and shake, just before the circle began to collapse inward on itself.   
  
  
---------------------------------  
  
  
Heero was partially stunned as he dropped out of the link - he'd been in the process of fighting Zechs when Quatre called for the link, and had expended a lot of energy there before they cast that damn spell. He struggled to open his eyes, to sit up and check the situation around him, but his body refused to respond. He finally managed to get his eyes cracked open, and all he saw was a dim golden haze. A second later he became aware of someone crouching over him, and redoubled his efforts to sit up.  
  
"Shhh, be still, you overextended yourself," said a familiar voice, although it took him a moment to place it. He hadn't heard that person speaking that way in a long time.   
  
When he finally managed to place the voice, he actually did manage to sit up in alarm. "Zechs!" The golden haze had faded slightly, enough so that he could see the older man kneeling by his side, his hands spread and his face creased in concentration as he exerted himself to heal Heero. "What are you doing?" he demanded, stalling for time for him to recover enough to stand up.   
  
"Healing you."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"I'm in control again," Zechs reminded him with a bitter smile. "The demon is gone, I'm not fighting you any more." There was a heavy load of guilt obvious in Zechs' voice, but Heero was still angry enough on Duo's behalf that he didn't say anything to try to ameliorate his guilt. It might not have been Zechs who'd said and done all those things to Duo, but Heero was discovering it was very, very difficult to keep the two separate.  
  
Zechs' raised his eyes to look at the rapidly shrinking hole in the sky, and Heero sat up on his own, inwardly wincing at the amount of effort it took.   
  
"You've done it," Zechs said quietly. "I... I apologize."  
  
Heero glared at him out of the corner of his eye. He had a feeling that Zechs was not apologizing for what he had done while in the control of the demon. That would be stupid, to expect that he could assume responsibility for what had happened while the demon was in control. Zechs wasn't stupid. "For what?" Heero asked sharply.   
  
"Doubting you," came the immediate answer. "When I saw you, I thought you were just children, I thought that somehow there'd been some horrible mistake, that you were going to end up getting us all killed. I was wrong, you were equal to your task and more. I apologize."  
  
Heero grunted. Suddenly, he felt a stab of danger from above, and his head snapped up. The hole was almost closed, but it wasn't black anymore. Now it was an intense white, and just before the hole closed, the light emerged from the hole. It wasn't just light, it was a huge sphere of energy, raw power in it's most potent and dangerous form. And it was headed right for the fort.   
  
In a second Heero knew what had happened. The demons, seeing what they were about to do, realizing that they were about to be denied access forever to that world, had responded by trying to destroy everything. They must have gathered as much energy as they could into one place, and flung that energy through the gate just before it closed. Heero stared at the ball, watching it grow larger as it got closer. It seemed to be moving very slowly, but that was because of the distances involved. It was actually moving quite quickly, and that would become readily apparent as it drew closer. They only had a few minutes to react.  
  
Heero struggled to his feet, his eyes fixed on the ball overhead. He knew without checking that he was the only one in any kind of condition to meet the threat - the others had given just as much to the spell as he had, and they hadn't had anyone there to help them recover, as Zechs had helped him. He was the only one of them that could possibly do anything to stop the ball from utterly destroying their world. But he was hardly in peak condition himself.  
  
If he'd been completely healthy, with all of the others' power behind him, he would have stood a good chance at surviving the impact. As it was... there was almost no chance that he would survive. But he if put himself between the ball and everything else, he might be able to absorb enough power that what remained wouldn't hurt anyone. He had to protect Duo.  
  
Duo. Even as he gathered in the last remnants of his power and popped his wings out, preparing to fling himself into the sky, the thought made him freeze. Duo. He had to protect Duo, he had to make sure Duo survived, but he'd made a promise. He'd promised not to lose Duo. If he died in this attempt, Duo would blame himself. He'd think that he was to blame, that his getting close to Heero was the cause of his death. He'd never let himself get close to anyone else ever again.  
  
That thought was physically painful. He didn't like the thought of Duo being with someone else, but he liked even less the thought of Duo spending the rest of his life alone. And he would, Heero knew that.   
  
So he hesitated, plagued by indecision as he had never been before. He couldn't let Duo die, but he couldn't leave him, either.   
  
Suddenly a force hit him from behind and he was flung to the ground. He rolled over, hand raised defensively... and saw Zechs standing over him, a light golden aura around him as *he* started to draw in his power. "Sorry, Heero," he said, not sounding at all apologetic. "You've done enough, it's my turn. Perhaps I can somehow atone for what I did in the last months." He turned to look up at the ball. "Please convey my apologies to my sister, it looks like she's going to have to keep the throne." And with that, he leapt into the air. He had no wings, so he propelled himself up by power alone.   
  
"Zechs!" Heero shouted, furious for no good reason he could think of. But it was completely beyond him to even catch Zechs, much less stop him.   
  
:Heero!: Duo's voice seemed very soft and distant, although Heero knew he was only a few hundred feet away, just out of eyesight around the corner of the fort. :Heero, what's going on?! Heero!: he was beginning to sound panicked.  
  
:I'm here.:  
  
:Heero! Are you all right? What's going on?:  
  
:Zechs is going to try to stop it,: Heero told him, his eyes fixed on the small black dot that was Zechs as he raced to meet the energy ball. It wouldn't be long now.  
  
:Zechs?!: Duo's voice was tinged with horror, disbelief, and deep back where Heero could barely feel it, a little fear.   
  
:Will he be able to do it?: Quatre asked. His voice, too, was almost a whisper, a sign of how much they'd been drained.   
  
Suddenly Zechs' black spot became incandescent white, the same color as the ball he raced to meet, and a moment later, the two lights met each other, and then Heero threw up his arm in a futile attempt to shield his eyes from the blinding light that bathed him from several different planes.  
  
  
--------------------------------  
  
  
  
Duo blinked furiously, rubbing at his eyes with his knuckles, trying to restore his vision. Even blinded as he was, he stumbled forward, weaving his way through the ranks of confused, stunned, and dead Oz soldiers. Tired as he was, it took him several minutes to reach his destination, although he probably could have covered the distance in less than a minute at his regular strength.   
  
It was obvious that whatever Zechs had done, it had worked. The world hadn't ended, although for a few minutes as they were assaulted by the bright light from the explosion that seared his normal eyes and scorched his mage-senses, the backlash reaction he'd felt had made him wish it was. Zechs had not survived the incident, and Duo couldn't bring himself to feel sorry, at least, not yet. For now, he felt safer, and he was alive. So was Heero, he could feel him, but Heero had barely been able to speak to him before the explosion, and Duo had felt much better before that, so it wasn't really surprising that Heero wasn't responding to his calls now. Duo could still feel him, though, and he was alive. Duo hadn't managed to get him killed.   
  
A second later he saw Heero, on his hands and knees, obviously struggling to stand up. His head snapped up when he saw Duo, however, and Duo felt Heero's eyes boring into him, and he grinned in relief.   
  
"Heero!" he cried, and threw himself at his lover, knocking him back to the ground with his enthusiasm. "Are you all right?"  
  
"I'm fine," Heero said through gritted teeth, and it was obvious he was trying not to grimace in pain.   
  
"Heero..." Duo regarded him seriously. "You were thinking about trying to stop that thing by yourself, weren't you?" he accused.  
  
"I was going to," Heero admitted.  
  
"What?!" Duo screeched, not caring if he sounded like an old fishwife. "Heero, how could you..."  
  
"I couldn't," Heero cut him off. "I... I couldn't. I wanted to, I needed to protect you, but I couldn't do it. I hesitated, and Zechs took my place."  
  
"You couldn't?" Duo repeated. "Why not?"  
  
"Because I promised you I'd stay with you," Heero said seriously. "I didn't want to leave you. I couldn't leave you."  
  
Duo's eyes pricked with tears, but he automatically forced them away. "You wanted... to stay with me?"  
  
Heero nodded. "It's because of you that I'm alive. If it wasn't for you, I would have just thrown myself at that thing. Zechs never would have been able to stop me, and I would have died. I'm alive because of you."  
  
Duo stared at him. "Heero..." he whispered. "That... that may be the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me."  
  
Heero's lips twitched upwards once. "I love you."  
  
Duo smiled. "That was even better."  
  
  
  
  
  
That part with Treize was very difficult to write. I like Treize. I hope that it didn't end up too corny or anything. The last section, the epilogue, will be out in a few days, I think, so there's no need to make any more threats.  
Marika 9/1/01  
  
  
  
  
  



	20. Part 19 (epilogue)

The light had barely faded from the sky when the gates to the fort opened and the Manguanacs swarmed out. They swiftly made their way through the Oz soldiers, avoiding the few who still stood and homing in on the five Chosen, who lay collapsed in several heaps around the castle. Quatre was the first recovered, and he struggled to his feet long enough to reassure the Manguanacs that he was fine, before he nearly collapsed again. Rashid easily caught him as he stumbled, and supported him with one arm under his shoulders, because Quatre refused to let anyone carry him and insisted on going to meet Trowa, who was being similarly assisted, before going inside the safety of the fort. No one knew exactly what the Oz soldiers would do, now that they were free, but no one was taking any chances. Right now they were too stunned to do anything, but that situation might change at any time.   
  
Duo and Heero they found together, and the two stumbled to their feet and managed to make it several feet by leaning on each other before they almost fell as well. After that they allowed themselves to be helped.   
  
Sally found Wufei still kneeling beside Treize's body. He managed to get up on his own and glare at her. The look she sent back was an astonishing combination of exasperated and hurt, and Wufei had the decency to look abashed, although he glared again when his cheeks started to turn slightly red. He started to stumble back to the castle on his own while Sally trailed a few feet behind him. After he fell for the fourth time, he glared at her and barked, "Are you going to help me or not?" She smiled slightly and he threw one arm over his shoulder. The two of them made it back to the fort without any other assistance.  
  
  
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The morning after that battle, Trowa heard a slight sound that brought him to full wakefulness in an instant. He'd learned, over the years, to ignore 'normal' sounds, wherever he was, and to only pay attention when there was a sound that didn't belong there. He must have heard something to bring him out of the deep, restful sleep he'd been in, only barely distinguishable from a trance by someone familiar with one.  
  
He lay quietly with his eyes open for several minutes, trying to figure out what had happened without moving. Quatre wasn't as sensitive as he was, but he was certain that if he tried to move off the bed, Quatre would wake up. Quatre really needed this sleep - he'd practically been transparent when the stumbled up here yesterday... or was it the day before? Trowa was alarmed to discover that he'd actually lost track of how long he'd been asleep.  
  
Of course, it wasn't as if he hadn't needed the rest, he'd been just as drained as Quatre. In fact, they probably would have been flat on their backs for weeks if it wasn't for some of the mages, who'd taken turns expending a great deal of time and effort to bring the five of them back to normal. Or so Trowa assumed, he'd only seen Quatre since the battle, since the two of them shared a room, but the mages that had tended to them had said that the others were fine, just exhausted.  
  
Trowa himself had been too exhausted to protest having that many people around him, close to him, while he was vulnerable, and whenever he started to get very uncomfortable, Quatre would lay a hand on his arm or shoulder and leave it there until he relaxed, no matter how tired Quatre might be.  
  
He was still a little tired, but there was no way that he was going to go to sleep until he figured out what it was that had woken him up. He heard something very faintly... it sounded like shouting. He strained to hear more, but failed. Very, very carefully, he reached for his power, and was pleasantly surprised to find that he didn't feel any pain. After a moment's thought, he knew why. Magic couldn't heal backlash, but it hadn't been backlash that they'd been experiencing. It had been exhaustion, plain and simple - they'd given everything they had to that spell. And exhaustion could be healed by magic, simple enough.   
  
As quietly as he could, because he knew that magic disturbances would wake Quatre faster than any physical disturbance, he funneled some of the energy into his body, improving his hearing. At once, the voices jumped to crystalline clarity.   
  
"Out, witch!" That comment was followed by a series of curses that Trowa didn't recognize, but the voice was Rashid's. "Leave this place or I will kill you."  
  
"I'm not leaving until I speak with him," said a firm voice, and Trowa involuntarily stiffened. He recognized that voice! But how in the world had Lady Une gotten into the fortress?!  
  
Quatre either felt his alarm or felt him stiffen beside him on the bed, because he suddenly woke. He immediately sat up, then raked blond hair out of his eyes, a somewhat confused expression on his face. Quatre was not a morning person, not by a long shot. He managed, during the war and while they were on the run, but during the few safe days they'd had between Sank kingdom and when Quatre went to see his father, he'd always managed to sleep late and was incurably grumpy for a good hour after rising.  
  
Now, however, he'd pushed all of that aside and had his sword in hand, ready to fight even as his mind shook off the last remnants of sleep. "What happened?" he asked, looking around the room and probably through the walls with his mage-sight. Then he relaxed slightly and blinked. "Wait a minute. Did I... I didn't dream that, right? We really did it?" he asked, turning towards Trowa.  
  
Trowa nodded silently, then smiled as Quatre's face lit up, and he threw his arms around Trowa, dropping the sword in the process. For a minute he just stayed there, squeezing Trowa as hard as he could, and Trowa didn't protest. Everyone else could wait, now that he was with Quatre.  
  
After a few minutes, Quatre pulled back to arm's length. "What happened? Why were you scared?" he asked.  
  
"Lady Une is here," Trowa told him.   
  
Quatre's eyes widened. "How?" he demanded.  
  
"I don't know, I just found out that she was here."   
  
"Let's go," Quatre said, sliding out from underneath the blanket, and Trowa realized that Quatre had absolutely nothing on.  
  
Come to think of it, neither did he. The thought brought a small blush to his cheeks.  
  
Quatre, the little mindreader, obviously hadn't given up his habit, because he glanced over his shoulder at Trowa, and the look he sent was positively devious. :Trowa,: he whispered, pausing in his preparations long enough to pose for Trowa. :Do you like what you see?:   
  
Trowa could have happily strangled him, and might have (well, not really), if Quatre hadn't giggled like a little kid and then thrown some clean clothes at him from the chest that rested beside the bed. Sometimes he wondered if Quatre really knew what he was doing to him, then he remembered that Quatre was probably reading his mind as he thought that, and every time he looked up, Quatre's eyes were there, meeting his, that same devious smile on his face.   
  
They hadn't gotten very physical yet. The gods knew that Heero and Duo hadn't waited, Quatre was caught up in their emotions often enough that Trowa was intimately familiar with far too much of their personal lives. He wasn't quite sure why they'd waited, but it was because of Quatre. There'd been something very wrong with doing that while they were fighting, with the way people were dying and Quatre was so incredibly on edge...  
  
It's over now, Trowa suddenly realized as he pulled on his shirt. He knew that Quatre was interested, just not during the war, and Trowa had resigned himself to wait. It wasn't what he would have preferred, but he wasn't going to push Quatre, not when just being near him made him feel so alive.  
  
:Yup, it's over,: Quatre said into his mind as he jammed his feet into his boots. :Which is all the more reason to deal with this as quickly as possible!:  
  
Trowa blinked. He hadn't been aware that Quatre was this eager.  
  
:I've been trying really hard not to think about it. I don't think I could have handled it during the war, it would have been... bad... with my power...: Here he paused and shook himself slightly. :On top of everything else we had to do, but now...: he gave Trowa that look again.  
  
"Come on," Quatre said out loud. "Let's go see what happened."  
  
They opened the door to their quarters, and met Heero and Duo in the hallway.   
  
"Lady Une is here," Quatre told them, and Heero nodded shortly. "Duo, do you know how she got through the shield?"  
  
Duo's eyes unfocused for a second, then he blinked and answered, "It's gone. She didn't have to go through anything."  
  
"What?" Heero asked sharply.  
  
Duo shrugged. "We don't need it anymore, and it had to be a major drain on their resources. They couldn't leave it up indefinitely. The trees will remain, and there probably won't be much bad weather in this region, but that's about it." He paused and looked around. "Where's Wufei? He has to be up by now."  
  
Quatre's face suddenly turned very red, and Trowa had a sneaking suspicion. That suspicion was confirmed when he turned, not towards Wufei's quarters, but towards Sally's, which were in the opposite direction.   
  
Sure enough, a few seconds later, the door opened and Wufei emerged, fully dressed and with his sword in his hand. A moment after that, Sally emerged, also dressed and with a sword, but with an inordinately pleased expression on her face. She smiled at them with a look that was almost smug, and Trowa smiled back.  
  
"Hey Wufei, that's... ow!" Duo exclaimed as Heero grabbed his braid and pulled hard. But Heero was also wearing a slight smirk, which Wufei obviously saw, as he glared at all of them before sighing and shaking his head, his shoulders slumping slightly in defeat.   
  
"What has happened?" he asked instead.  
  
Quatre was smiling slightly but answered seriously. "Lady Une is here," he responded, unconsciously flashing them all an image of her. "And the shield the faeries constructed is gone, permanently."  
  
"What does she want?" Wufei demanded, his eyes going vague as he also pinpointed her location.   
  
"We were going to find out."  
  
Wufei grunted acknowledgement and without waiting for the rest of them, started off down the corridor, obviously assuming that they would follow. Trowa did, but not before he heard Duo lean over and whisper to Sally, "Nice job, we were all rooting for you."  
  
  
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Lady Une had made it to the courtyard before someone stopped her, and now was standing quietly with a fixed expression on her face as Rashid glared at her. Quatre, looking as composed as ever, walked directly up to him. "What's going on, Rashid?" he asked, pretending to ignore Une for the moment.  
  
"She wishes to speak to you, Master Quatre," Rashid said with a glare, making it obvious that if Quatre said so, he'd gladly slice her in two.  
  
Quatre gave a slight shake of his head and turned to face Une. "What do you want, Lady?"  
  
"I am the highest ranking member of Treize's staff to survive," Une said immediately, turning to face him. "Therefore it is essential that I brief you on the condition of the troops and the state, your majesty," she said with a deep bow.  
  
Duo happened to be looking at Quatre when she said this, so he got to see all the color drain from his face. Quatre swallowed once, then asked in a hoarse voice that was hardly more than a whisper, "What did you say?"  
  
"Your majesty," Une repeated. She paused for a second, then added, "The line of succession is clear."  
  
"I am not in the line of succession," Quatre snapped. "I was disinherited, remember? By law, no mage can inherit anything!"  
  
"Treize was quite clear on that account, actually. He left it stipulated that upon his death, all the laws concerning so-called 'faeries' and their rights as citizens of Oz would be restored to what they were before his reign, with a few additions which I am permitted to explain to you after your coronation."  
  
Duo finally decided to cut in. Quatre was looking decidedly green. "What the hell are you talking about, lady?"  
  
"He is the new king," Une responded, with another bow in Quatre's direction.   
  
"Quatre?" Duo asked, looking for confirmation.  
  
"I was fourth in line," Quatre murmured, still very pale. "Trieze had few close relatives. First was his cousin, Dorothy Catalonia." His hand drifted down to his side, where Duo knew he still had a scar from when he'd been stabbed.  
  
"Catalonia?" Duo repeated. "You mean the witch with the eyebrows? The one who..." Duo suddenly cut himself off, wishing that he'd thought a little more before opening his mouth. Sometimes I think I should just stuff my braid in my mouth and leave it there, he thought ruefully.  
  
Quatre winced slightly. "Yes, well... Second in line was Treize's half-uncle, a noble named Noventa." He looked questioningly towards Une.  
  
"When Treize demanded that all of his vassals send in their troops to support his army, some questioned his demand," Une said quietly. "Noventa was among those he killed as an example to the others."  
  
Quatre nodded, his face still pale. "And then came my father..." here he hesitated for a few seconds, then continued, "And then me."  
  
Trowa moved up until he was directly behind Quatre, then put both of his arms around the smaller boy as he stared at Une. Quatre unconsciously raised one hand to grasp Trowa's arm, all of his attention focused on Une. "Who... who is next, now?" Quatre asked her.  
  
Une's eyebrows rose slightly. "Your majesty..." her gaze went vague as Quatre's eyes narrowed. For a moment both froze.   
  
Just as suddenly, they both blinked and Quatre frowned.   
  
:What's going on, Quat?: Duo asked.  
  
:I'm currently first in line to inherit the throne from Treize,: Quatre said softly.   
  
:But we just killed him!:   
  
:It doesn't matter, if what she's said is true...: Quatre trailed off for a second, and Duo could feel the tension in him. He remembered a few discussions he'd had with Quatre during their journey (as the only other one who spoke regularily, they'd had a lot of discussions), where Quatre described his relief at not being heir to his father's position, because of the pressures, the dishonesty, the outright murders that took place in the political maneuverings at that level. Quatre couldn't be happy about this.  
  
:Screw 'em,: Duo suggested. :There have to be other people out there that can do this, let them take care of it.:  
  
:I can't.:  
  
:Why not?:  
  
:Septum.:  
  
:Who the hell is Septum?:  
  
:He's next in line after me.:  
  
:So?:  
  
:He's a monster, a thousand times worse than Treize ever was. I can't let the country fall into his hands.: Quatre gave him a small smile. :I can do a lot of good for our kind in that position, far more than I ever could on my own.: He sounded like he was trying to convince himself, and Duo saw Trowa's grip on his love tighten slightly.  
  
Trowa bent his head down until his forehead rested on the top of Quatre's head, and Quatre suddenly relaxed into him as Duo felt the slight murmur of conversation between the two. After a few seconds Quatre nodded suddenly, and straightened, raising his head, and Duo unintentionally caught the tail end of their conversation.   
  
:..really?:  
  
:I will always stay with you,: Trowa told him firmly.   
  
Duo slammed up his shields, he was not going to intrude on their conversation, but a second later his brain finally caught up with what he'd just heard.  
  
:Quatre?: he said hesitantly.  
  
:Yes?: Quatre responded immediately, opening his eyes.  
  
:You do realize that we'll be there for you, if you want us,: Duo told him, reaching out for Heero's support. After all, he didn't know for sure if Quatre wanted them around, now that the war was over. Quatre was such a... a... well, innocent wasn't the right word, but it didn't seem like someone like him would have much use for an assassin and a thief.  
  
Quatre's eyes widened in surprise. :You... you'd do that? For me?:  
  
Duo could have smacked himself. Again. Of course Quatre would assume that they'd rather be somewhere else, having fun probably. He was so giving it was irritating, sometimes. :Sure! What, you expect me to get a job or something somewhere. If you want a mangy not-so-ex-thief, you got me?:  
  
:*My* mangy thief,: Heero corrected. :And you have us, if you need us.:   
  
:Hai,: Wufei agreed.   
  
:Thank you,: Quatre whispered, tears filling his eyes. :Thank you all.: He turned in Trowa's arms to give him a quick kiss, then turned back to Une. "Lady, I need to know the condition of the forces gathered outside the gates," he paused, then added, "My forces."  
  
  
----------------------  
  
  
Quatre rubbed his eyes and wondered how he'd missed the amount of tedious boredom involved in his new position. Well, long stretches of boredom mixed with shorter periods of intense frustration. Oh well, I guess it's better than the old pattern of long stretches of boredom followed by periods of intense terror. No doubt about it, this was infinitely preferable to what they'd faced during the war.  
  
But still... Quatre quickly rearranged his features into something solemn and dignified, something that would be expected of a king, as the herald announced the next lord. He'd been at this for over three days now, meeting and greeting every single one of the nobles of the kingdom... my kingdom, I have to remember that... so that they could pledge loyalty to him and see him with their own eyes, and so that he could convince them that he was worthy of their loyalty. Too often, that meant proving that he really was too strong for them to attempt to bully, or worse, to overthrow. That accounted for the frustration - they had to know what he and the others had accomplished, did they really think that just because he was young and small that he was going to let them push him around?  
  
The man who walked in was easily three or four *times* his age, and literally dripping with jewels and expensive robes. He had half a dozen retainers with him, and a quick mental check told Quatre that Rashid had refused to let him bring the other dozen or so that he had with him into the throne room. Quatre felt guilty about uprooting Rashid and taking him away from the rest of the men, but he needed some people close by that he could trust, and Treize had taken most of his staff with him to the desert, and most of them had died there, so they were a little short-handed right now.  
  
It would be generations, probably, before the land recovered from that war. Not the land itself, they'd managed to keep most of the damage to the desert, but the nation of Oz, that was another story. They'd killed thousands of men in the desert, and while Oz was a big nation, they'd wiped out a good portion of the young men from their own generation, and those a decade or two older than them. That was going to be a serious problem in a generation, and it was a serious problem now, in terms of manpower. Quatre had been left effectively without an army.  
  
Well, he had one, it was just that the army he had was less than a tenth of the one that Treize had possessed. His standing army, that was, to speak nothing of the troops that he could have called up, had called up from his vassals. Quatre had no such resources.  
  
Of course, it didn't matter too much. He alone could have held the borders of Oz with his power, and the other four had stayed, so it wasn't as if Oz was in danger of invasion, it was just a good idea to have some sort of visible force to let Romafella know that they weren't weak. Oh well, as Duo had put it, screw them. If Romafella tried to attack, he'd give them a demonstration of his power. Or maybe he'd let Duo deal with them, he'd been complaining about how bored he was. Duo really needed something to occupy himself.  
  
At least they didn't have to worry about Romafella having mages of their own. Although the normal mages (no longer called faeries, by royal decree) had gained quite a bit of power when the war ended, they were still nowhere near as powerful as any of the five, or even as powerful as any of the old mages. They had a least a generation until *those* started popping up, and even then, they were the only ones with any reliable knowledge about the old spells. Which meant that any powerful mages would either have to search for any records that had survived the past thousand years, or come to Wufei's school to learn.  
  
Quatre did his best to conceal a smile and keep his face appropriately serious as the noble went into the long, involved greeting that was customary. It might be proper, but after you'd heard it a dozen times, it quickly lost it's appeal.   
  
He was so glad that Wufei and Sally had found each other, and one of the best things that he'd done since becoming king was giving them money and property so that they could start a school. Wufei was going to be teaching the magical arts, and Sally was going to concentrate on spreading her rare knowledge about healing herbs. She had already sent word to Relena, explaining what had happened (Quatre would have loved to see that letter) and saying that she was going to have to resign her position as spy master. She probably couldn't have stayed there, anyway. It wasn't much use having a spy master who was good friends with the rulers of another kingdom.   
  
Quatre had gone to Sank personally, just for a day, to tell Relena what had happened to Milliardo. That had been one of the most painful things he'd ever had to do. How exactly were you supposed to explain to a person that their beloved older brother had been possessed by demons, tried to bring about the fall of the planet, and then sacrificed himself to the same cause? Relena had been very kind about it, hiding whatever grief she felt long enough to ask Quatre if he needed any support from Sank and to tell him that she would be in contact later to establish firm relationships between their kingdoms before she excused herself so she wouldn't lose control of herself in public. It wouldn't do for a queen to be seen bursting into tears.  
  
Heero had arrived at the palace, taken one look at what little remained of the guards who were supposed to guard the king, and dismissed them all in disgust. No one thought to question his authority until some time after, by which time Quatre had thought to cover him by declaring him Master of the Guard and a general. Technically, both of those positions were supposed to only be open to those of noble birth, but Quatre made it quite clear that he was ready to ennoble Heero if it came down to that, and no one had protested. Heero had picked the best loyal fighters out of those that had survived the war, promoted them, and was now engaged in training new troops, after he'd been over the castle from top to bottom, checking for possible weaknesses that assassins could take advantage of. Whenever he found a weakness, he bullied the servants into fixing it before moving on. Quatre found the entire situation somewhat amusing - it wasn't as if he couldn't protect himself from assassins, after all. However, there were other people close to him that he did not want in danger, and for that reason, he was grateful for everything that Heero was doing. He was even more grateful that Heero had just stayed with him. He didn't know if he'd have been able to handle this without the others supporting him, even if he didn't see them very often.  
  
Maybe that was why he was so short-tempered right now. Trowa, officially the Royal  
Consort, had left several days ago to inspect the wastelands that remained as a mute testimony to the last mage war. Quatre knew that Trowa tried not to be uncomfortable around people, normal humans in particular, for his sake, but it was a constant struggle for his lover. For that reason, Quatre had immediately agreed, even encouraged him, when Trowa had hesitantly suggested that he might go take a look at them. Trowa thought that with his powers, especially since they were given to him by the Earth itself, he might be able to start a healing process in those lands. It would take years, maybe generations, but eventually, he might be able to restore the beautiful grasslands that their predecessors had shown them.  
  
Quatre heartily approved, although he knew that this would take Trowa away from him for long periods of time. It wasn't as if he couldn't visit him whenever he wanted, but this was the first time that they'd been separated since they went to the desert to battle. So far he was exerting his self-control and not conjuring himself to the far north to have a quick visit with his love, but he wasn't enjoying the experience. Trowa probably hadn't even reached the wastelands yet. He couldn't conjure himself right there, not without knowing what it looked like and establishing a power node there, and because of the very nature of the wastelands, there was little power at all there. And according to Trowa, what power remained was twisted and unusable.   
  
Still... They had waited a very long time, and he'd only had Trowa for a couple of months before Trowa left, and enforced abstinence wasn't sitting very well.  
  
A small smile did appear on his face as he remembered the first time, in the royal chambers which did not feel like they were his, in a far-too-large bed.  
  
Quatre regretfully dragged himself back to the present as Tsuberov finished his part of the ceremony. Quatre rose and inclined his head gracefully as Tsuberov somehow managed to drop to one knee, the gesture made clumsy by his huge bulk. "We are pleased to accept your fealty," Quatre said formally, placing a hand on the man's head, inwardly wincing as he encountered a large amount of oil in his hair. "And you are welcome to stay in the palace as our guest as long as you desire." That was part of the ceremony, too, and if Quatre hadn't thought that every old noble would have been scandalized if he left it out, he probably would have. He hoped that Tsuberov left quickly.  
  
"My honor, your majesty," Tsuberov said, hauling himself to his feet. "But before I leave, I wanted to speak with you about the taxes my realm must pay. As one of the few of your advisors who remains from your father's time, I was hoping that we could work out some sort of agreement..."  
  
Quatre nearly groaned. It was going to be another one of those meetings. Sometimes he wished that he could just cast a spell on his nobles to make them loyal to him and leave it at that. But no, that wouldn't be right. But it was awfully tempting.  
  
"Of course," he said through gritted teeth. "Why don't we discuss it right now?"  
  
  
------------------------  
  
  
Duo watched with growing amusement as Quatre patiently dealt with the fat old noble for the better part of an hour. First the man attempted to trick Quatre into placing his seal on a document that would have virtually eliminated the taxes that he had to pay to the crown. When that failed to work, he tried to bully Quatre into the same action, which obviously wasn't working, although he was too stupid to notice it.   
  
"What's going on?" Heero asked as he suddenly appeared behind Duo, looking over his shoulder into the mirror that he'd spelled.   
  
"Quatre's dealing with this old fart," Duo told him, leaning back into Heero and wrapping a hand around his back. Heero looked *good* in a uniform, he reflected happily. And even better out of it. Duo grinned to himself, and told himself that he could wait until evening to get his lover out of those clothes. Really, he could.  
  
"Hn."  
  
Quatre was really getting irritated, Duo could tell by the tension in his neck and the way that Quatre's right hand was drifting towards the spot on his hip where his sword would usually rest. Finally Quatre jumped to his feet in the middle of one of Tsuberov's rants, which was full of just-barely-veiled threats directed at Quatre's friends and family, his wings snapping out into existence behind him.  
  
Tsuberov was so shocked at the appearance of the wings that he actually stopped talking, and several of his servants tried to hide behind his bulk.   
  
Quatre sure knew how to make an appearance, though. He stretched his wings out to their full length as he walked down the stairs that led to the throne, making himself look as large as possible. "Lord Tsuberov," he said quietly, his tone light. "If you make one more threat against any of those I care about, I would look to your own safety quickly. Need I remind you that I am a mage, fully capable of defending and running my country without any help from any vassals?"  
  
"No, my lord," Tsuberov choked out, dropping to one knee again.   
  
"Good," Quatre said sternly, allowing his wings to droop a little bit, but not absorbing them into his body. He turned and walked the few steps back to the throne, then seated himself on the edge of it, since it was not designed for people with wings sticking out of their backs. "Now, I believe that we were discussing the taxes that your region pays the crown, is that right?"  
  
"Yes, my lord," Tsuberov replied, not rising.  
  
"It seems to me that I remember that your region was one of the few that escaped without any damage in the war, is that correct?" Quatre asked coolly, his manner suggesting that he wasn't really asking a question. Sure enough, a second later he continued. "I think that you would be in a better position that most of your fellows, isn't that right?" he asked. Again, without waiting for a response, he continued, "I think that perhaps I should *raise* the taxes your region pays, to help those injured during the war get back on their feet, so to speak."  
  
Duo saw Tsuberov's face turn a very odd shade of purple, and he seemed unable to answer.   
  
"Yes, I will keep that consideration in mind, thank you for the suggestion," Quatre said, ignoring the fact that that wasn't close to what Tsuberov had said. "Rashid?" he called, raising his voice slightly, and Duo saw the huge Manguanac enter the room.   
  
"Yes, Master Quatre?"  
  
"Please escort Lord Tsuberov back to the stables and see that his escort is ready for him," Quatre instructed smoothly. "He has to get back to his realm to make sure that the crops are ready to be gathered. He may be assisting with the recovery effort more than anticipated." The barely-veiled threat seemed to come as a shock to Tsuberov, who stumbled to his feet. Now his face was white. He bowed once, and then allowed himself to be escorted out of the room without saying a word.   
  
Duo quickly cancelled the spell on the mirror as he saw Quatre rise from the throne and head for the door to the small room that Duo was currently in.   
  
Quatre opened the door and closed it carefully before taking his crown off and throwing it across the room.   
  
Duo stared at him, something was strange... it took him a second to realize what it was, and then he burst out laughing. Quatre glared at him. "What?" he snapped.  
  
"Since when are you taller than me?" Duo asked between his chuckles. Quatre glanced down at himself. He'd obviously forgotten the fact that he'd spelled himself to look several inches taller and a few years older. He growled something unrepeatable and then rubbed his forehead as if he had a headache.   
  
"Is this because Trowa's not here?" Duo asked, unable to resist a little more teasing. "Frustration from something else boosting your self-image?"  
  
Quatre's eyes narrowed, and Duo suddenly realized that he might have caught Quatre at the wrong time for that sort of teasing. After all, Quatre had just spent the better part of two hours dealing with the old fart, and Duo wasn't even sure how long Quatre had been at it before he started to watch. He'd only started because he'd sensed Quatre's frustration and had nothing better to do while Heero was inspecting some new recruits.  
  
"Don't think I didn't feel you watching me, either," Quatre said slowly, and Duo could practically see the wheels turning in his mind. It suddenly occurred to him that he might have hit a little too close to home with that jab about Trowa, too. Oh, shit.  
  
:You really shouldn't bother him right after court,: Heero said matter-of-factly, but the fact that he pulled Duo closer to him as he said it told Duo that he was still there with him, and that he was, in a weird way, just joking around. Heero had a very, very weird sense of humor, as Duo was discovering.  
  
"I think you have a little too much free time on your hands," Quatre continued ominously, crossing his arms across his chest. As he spoke, he absorbed his wings, and his image shimmered slightly as he resumed his true form.   
  
Duo couldn't really argue with that. He was bored - this was the first time in a very long time that he either wasn't struggling to get enough food to get by, or wasn't fighting a war. Not having either of those occupations to occupy him left him with a lot of free time.   
  
"All right," Quatre said cheerfully, sitting down in a comfortable chair. "What are you going to do?"  
  
Duo blinked. Whatever he'd been expecting, this hadn't been it. "What?" he asked intelligently.  
  
"What do you want to do? Trowa is going to rebuild the wastelands, Wufei and Sally have their school, and Heero's running the Guard and the army. What are you going to do?"  
  
Duo blinked again. "I... I, um, I don't know..." he started hesitantly.  
  
"Duo, you better give me something to do with you, or I'm going to make you a Duke," Quatre threatened.  
  
Duo gulped. He'd seen enough of the crap that Quatre went through because of his position to know that he didn't want any part of it. "You wouldn't."  
  
"Try me," Quatre said, leaning forward slightly with a hint of a smile on his face. "You know that Treize killed off half of the nobility, between making examples and using them in the front lines. I've been temporarily promoting everyone I can think of who's competent, but I'm still short for rulers of quite a few regions. You're competent, I know that. In fact, I bet you'd do a good job." His smile was positively poisonous, and Duo wasn't altogether sure that Quatre was bluffing.  
  
Nope, now was definitely not a good time to bother him, Duo thought to himself. He most certainly did not want to be a noble, and he opened his mouth to tell Quatre that. But because his brain wasn't entirely connected to his mouth, he automatically answered the question that Quatre had originally asked, with an answer that he'd been thinking about for a long time.  
  
"I want to have an orphanage," he blurted out, then clapped a hand over his mouth, his eyes widening in shock. "I mean... um..."  
  
Quatre's eyes had widened slightly at his accidental comment, all of the malicious gleam fading from his eyes. He leaned back in his chair, his eyes thoughtful. Duo swallowed, waiting for Quatre to tell him that he really wanted to, but Oz had just lost too much in the last few years to devote many resources to something like that...  
  
"That's a wonderful idea!" Quatre exclaimed, smiling brightly.   
  
Duo blinked. "What?"  
  
"Duo, that's a wonderful idea. I'm sorry I didn't think of it sooner, thank you for reminding me. There are a lot of children out there who are going to need a lot of help now that the war's over."  
  
"You think it's a good idea?" Duo asked. In his wandering, he'd heard a lot of wealthy people talking about how horrible poverty was and how wretched the children were, but he'd never seen anyone who was actually willing to do something about it.  
  
"Of course! Just tell me what you need, and I'll make sure it's done," Quatre told him. "Being a king has to be good for something," he muttered to himself as an afterthought.  
  
Duo blinked again. That's it? It's that simple? It was like a dream come true, he'd always felt guilty about abandoning those kids that he'd been watching when he was little, always wanted to do more for them, and now he could... He couldn't believe that Quatre had just agreed.  
  
:Baka. You've been thinking about this for a long while, haven't you?: Heero accused.   
  
:Well, sort of, I wasn't really serious,: Duo protested.  
  
Heero turned him around so they could look at each others eyes. :Yes, you were,: Heero said seriously. :Why didn't you tell me?: he sounded a little hurt.  
  
:I didn't think it... I didn't want to waste your time with something that wasn't important,: Duo replied defensively.  
  
:You. Are. Always. Important,: Heero said flatly, then leaned in to kiss him.  
  
"All right, that's enough!" Quatre suddenly exclaimed, jumping to his feet. "I'm going to visit Trowa! I'll be back in a couple of hours. Tell Rashid where I've gone, and let me know as soon as you have a list of whatever you need for your orphanage," Quatre told him, and then suddenly disappeared.  
  
Duo giggled. :You know, I think he misses Trowa a little.:  
  
"Hn."  
  
"Heero, you know, there are a couple of million words in our language, and I'm sure that Wufei or Quatre could teach you a couple million more in others, if you want."  
  
"Hn."  
  
"I just can't wait until the first time that you talk baby-talk to some little kid," Duo said, already chuckling at the mental image.  
  
He felt a stab of alarm from Heero. "Kids?" Heero asked.  
  
"Yeah." Duo felt a hint of guilt that he'd automatically assumed that Heero would come with him. After all, he had a lot of responsibilities here. Duo could always travel to see him...   
  
"Baka. Of course I'll come with you. I can travel to the palace to take care of things, once everything's arranged," Heero told him. "I just..." he trailed off hesitantly. "Kids?"  
  
"They'll love you," Duo ensured him.  
  
"You're... sure?" Heero asked, a hint of longing in his voice.  
  
Well, whaddya know? Heero's got a soft spot for kids, Duo marveled. "Of course I'm sure. They're just going to love you," he repeated, wrapping his arms around Heero's neck. "Just like I do. Well, almost as much as I do," he corrected after a moment's thought.  
  
"Hn."  
  
"Heero, what did I tell you? You have a mouth for a reason, how about you try to use it for talking."  
  
Heero looked at him consideringly for a moment, and Duo wondered what was going through his lover's mind. "Or not, if you want," Duo continued automatically. "I mean, if you really feel that... mph!" his words were abruptly cut off as Heero showed him exactly what he thought his mouth was for.  
  
  
  
THE END  
  
  
  
Well, that's the end of it! Hope that everyone enjoyed it, I had a lot of fun writing it!  
  
Official statistics: ten months of writing, 264 typed pages, approximately 150,000 words, and more strange looks from my friends and family as I pantomimed some of the scenes I was writing than I want to think about, and it's done.   
  
I want to thank everyone who gave me encouragement all the way through this monstrosity, especially Hana-chan and Nova, who managed to write me for every single chapter I posted. I never would have been able to finish it without that encouragement.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



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